Shloka 20
Diti’s Untimely Desire and the Birth-Cause of the Asura Line
Prelude to Hiranyākṣa–Varāha
यामाश्रित्येन्द्रियारातीन्दुर्जयानितराश्रमै: । वयं जयेम हेलाभिर्दस्यून्दुर्गपतिर्यथा ॥ २० ॥
yām āśrityendriyārātīn durjayān itarāśramaiḥ vayaṁ jayema helābhir dasyūn durga-patir yathā
Như vị chỉ huy thành lũy dễ dàng đánh bại bọn cướp xâm nhập, cũng vậy, nương tựa nơi người vợ, ta có thể chế ngự các giác quan—vốn khó thắng trong các āśrama khác.
Of the four orders of human society — the student, or brahmacārī order, the householder, or gṛhastha order, the retired, or vānaprastha order, and the renounced, or sannyāsī order — the householder is on the safe side. The bodily senses are considered plunderers of the fort of the body. The wife is supposed to be the commander of the fort, and therefore whenever there is an attack on the body by the senses, it is the wife who protects the body from being smashed. The sex demand is inevitable for everyone, but one who has a fixed wife is saved from the onslaught of the sense enemies. A man who possesses a good wife does not create a disturbance in society by corrupting virgin girls. Without a fixed wife, a man becomes a debauchee of the first order and is a nuisance in society — unless he is a trained brahmacārī, vānaprastha or sannyāsī. Unless there is rigid and systematic training of the brahmacārī by the expert spiritual master, and unless the student is obedient, it is sure that the so-called brahmacārī will fall prey to the attack of sex. There are so many instances of falldown, even for great yogīs like Viśvāmitra. A gṛhastha is saved, however, because of his faithful wife. Sex life is the cause of material bondage, and therefore it is prohibited in three āśramas and is allowed only in the gṛhastha-āśrama. The gṛhastha is responsible for producing first-quality brahmacārīs, vānaprasthas and sannyāsīs.
FAQs
This verse warns that if one takes shelter of an inauspicious, passion-agitating time, the senses—natural enemies—become very hard to control and can defeat a person with ease.
Diti pressed Kashyapa for union at an improper time; Kashyapa cautioned that yielding then empowers the senses and leads to harmful consequences, like thieves protected by a fortress.
Avoid making major choices when the mind is disturbed or driven by impulse; choose disciplined routines and supportive environments so the senses do not “take shelter” and overpower one’s better judgment.