Padma Purana — Bhumi Khanda, Shloka 25
Kāma and Indra’s Attempt to Shatter Chastity; the ‘Abode of Satya’ and the Ethics of the Virtuous Home
तद्गृहं सुकलाख्यं मे दग्धुं पापः समुद्यतः । अयमेष सहस्राक्षः कामेन सहितो बली
tadgṛhaṃ sukalākhyaṃ me dagdhuṃ pāpaḥ samudyataḥ | ayameṣa sahasrākṣaḥ kāmena sahito balī
وہ گناہگار میرے ‘سُکلا’ نامی گھر کو جلانے کے لیے اٹھ کھڑا ہوا ہے۔ اور یہ ہے ہزار آنکھوں والا طاقتور اندر، کام کے ساتھ۔
Uncertain (context not provided; likely a character narrating an impending attack/arson involving Indra and Kāma)
Concept: Even exalted beings can become instruments of adharma when driven by kāma; protection of the righteous household is a dharmic imperative.
Application: Treat desire as a force that can rationalize harm; pause before acting from impulse, and protect what is entrusted to you (home, dependents, vows).
Primary Rasa: raudra
Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka
Type: city
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A righteous home named Sukalā stands at the edge of a forest-settlement, its threshold marked with protective symbols and a small lamp. Indra, crowned and radiant yet tense, arrives with Kāma—bow in hand—while a dark intent to burn the house gathers like smoke before any flame is lit.","primary_figures":["Indra (Sahasrākṣa)","Kāma (Manmatha)","Sukalā (as the threatened householder figure, implied)"],"setting":"Forest-border hermitage village with a modest but sanctified house, tulasī planter near the doorway, and a distant sacrificial fire altar.","lighting_mood":"storm-charged twilight with flashes of divine radiance","color_palette":["indigo storm-cloud","burnished gold","ash gray","vermilion","leaf green"],"tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore painting style: Indra with gem-studded crown and gold-leaf halo stands beside Kāma holding a sugarcane bow; in the foreground the ‘Sukalā’ house with ornate doorway and a small oil lamp, gold leaf embellishment on ornaments and halos, rich reds and greens, traditional South Indian iconography, dramatic tension conveyed through posture and angled gazes.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari miniature style: a lyrical forest-edge settlement with delicate trees and a small sanctified house; Indra and Kāma approach from the right, refined faces and soft shading, cool blues and greens with a hint of smoky gray, subtle narrative tension in the spacing and gestures.","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural style: bold black outlines, Indra’s large expressive eyes and ornate jewelry, Kāma with stylized bow, the house rendered as a temple-like domestic shrine, natural pigments with dominant red/yellow/green, a looming smoky aura suggesting arson intent.","pichwai_prompt":"Pichwai cloth painting style: ornate floral borders and lotus motifs framing a domestic shrine-house; Indra and Kāma depicted with Nathdwara-like decorative richness, deep blues and gold, peacocks perched on the roofline, the threat symbolized by curling smoke patterns rather than explicit flames."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"dramatic","suggested_raga":"Durga","pace":"moderate-narrative","voice_tone":"authoritative","sound_elements":["distant thunder","temple bells","conch shell (faint)","rustling leaves","tense silence between phrases"]}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: तत्+गृहम्→तद्गृहं; सुकला+आख्यम्→सुकलाख्यं; अयम्+एषः→अयमेष; सहस्र+अक्षः→सहस्राक्षः (समास); कामेन+सहितः (अर्थतः सह-सम्बन्धः)।
FAQs
“Sahasrākṣa” (“Thousand-Eyed”) is a standard epithet of Indra, king of the gods, frequently used in Purāṇic narratives.
Kāma’s presence signals the influence of desire/attraction as a motivating force in the episode; Purāṇic stories often pair divine agents with personified impulses (like Kāma) to explain actions and conflicts.
Labeling the aggressor “pāpaḥ” frames the act (arson/violence) as adharma, warning that actions driven by harmful intent and uncontrolled desire lead to moral and karmic downfall.