Shloka 30

तमोगुण-निरूपण

Analysis of Tamas and its Marks

Devanagari script

पापयोनिं समापतन्नाश्वाण्डाला मूकचूचुका: । वर्णान्‌ पर्यायशश्षापि प्राप्रुवन्त्युत्तरोत्तरम्‌

Transliteration

pāpayoniṁ samāpatann āśvāṇḍālā mūkacūcukāḥ | varṇān paryāyaśaś cāpi prāpnuvanty uttarottaram ||

Translation

Thần Vāyu nói: Có kẻ lại rơi vào những bào thai tội lỗi, sinh làm Chandāla (hạng ngoài giai cấp), hoặc câm lặng, hoặc nói lắp bắp. Tuy vậy, theo trật tự của nhiều đời nhiều kiếp, khi những quả báo còn sót của nghiệp xưa dần tiêu hết và công đức chín muồi, họ cũng có thể đạt đến những địa vị xã hội cao hơn, từng bậc một.

Word by Word

• पापयोनिम्: sinful womb/birth (low sinful origin)
• पापयोनिम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: पापयोनि
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

• समापतन्: fell into / came to
• समापतन्: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: सम् + आपत्
• Form: Imperfect, 3rd, Plural

• अश्वाण्डालाः: horse-cāṇḍālas (a very low/outcaste group)
• अश्वाण्डालाः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: अश्वाण्डाल
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• मूकचूचुकाः: mutes and stammerers
• मूकचूचुकाः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: मूकचूचुक
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• वर्णान्: social classes/varṇas
• वर्णान्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: वर्ण
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Plural

• पर्यायशः: in succession, one after another
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: पर्यायशस्

• अपि: also/even
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि

• प्राप्रुवन्ति: they attain
• प्राप्रुवन्ति: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्र + आप्
• Form: Present, 3rd, Plural

• उत्तर-उत्तरम्: higher and higher (successively higher)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: उत्तर
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

Speaker

वायुदेव उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vāyudeva
• pāpayoni (sinful birth)
• caṇḍāla
• varṇa

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse emphasizes karmic causality across rebirths: harmful actions can lead to degraded or impaired births, yet through the gradual exhaustion of residual sin and the maturation of merit, a being may rise step-by-step to better conditions.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vāyudeva is describing the post-mortem and rebirth outcomes of beings according to their remaining karmic residues—some are reborn in low or afflicted conditions, while others, over successive births, attain progressively higher social standing.