Markandeya Purana — Adhyaya 23, Shloka 14

Adhyaya 23 — Ashvatara’s Vow for Madalasa and the Bestowal of Musical Science by Sarasvati

Sanskrit

अथ शोकजडो दीनो स्त्रजा हीनो मलान्वितः ।

विपक्षस्य भविष्यामि ततः परिभवास्पदम् ॥

Transliteration

atha śokajaḍo dīno strajā hīno malānvitaḥ / vipakṣasya bhaviṣyāmi tataḥ paribhavāspadam

Translation

Rồi ta, bị nỗi sầu làm cho tê dại, khốn khổ, không vòng hoa, nhơ nhớp và ô uế, sẽ trở thành mục tiêu cho sự khinh miệt của kẻ thù.

Word by Word

• atha: then
• atha: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atha (अव्यय)
• Form: आरम्भ/अनन्तरार्थक-अव्यय (then/now)

• śoka-jaḍaḥ: stupefied by grief
• śoka-jaḍaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śoka (प्रातिपदिक) + jaḍa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः (शोकेन जडः = 'stupefied by grief')

• dīnaḥ: wretched
• dīnaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: dīna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• srajā: with a garland
• srajā: Karana (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sraj (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन

• hīnaḥ: deprived (of)
• hīnaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: hīna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• mala-anvitaḥ: soiled/covered with dirt
• mala-anvitaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mala (प्रातिपदिक) + anvita (कृदन्त; √i/√anv-i धातु, क्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः (मलेन अन्वितः = 'covered/possessed of dirt')

• vipakṣasya: of the enemy/opponent
• vipakṣasya: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Genitive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vipakṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन

• bhaviṣyāmi: I shall become
• bhaviṣyāmi: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √bhū (भू धातु)
• Form: लृट् (Simple Future), उत्तमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• tataḥ: thereupon/then
• tataḥ: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tataḥ (अव्यय/तद्-तसिल्)
• Form: तसिल्-प्रत्ययान्त अव्यय (ablatival adverb: 'thereupon/from that')

• paribhava-āspadam: an object of humiliation
• paribhava-āspadam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: paribhava (प्रातिपदिक) + āspada (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः (परिभवस्य आस्पदम् = 'a seat/object of humiliation')

Speakers

• Implied internal monologue of Ṛtadhvaja

Verse Rasa

{ "primaryRasa": "karuna", "secondaryRasa": "bhakti", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }

Key Themes

• Dharma
• Royal duty
• Reputation and polity
• Grief’s effects

FAQs

What is the philosophical or ethical takeaway?

Personal sorrow has political and social consequences: a ruler (or kṣatriya) who collapses into visible neglect invites opportunism and ridicule. The verse frames self-mastery as part of one’s dharma toward dependents and the realm.

How does this fit the Pancalakshana (5 characteristics)?

Didactic narrative (vaṃśānucarita flavor), using royal conduct to illuminate dharma rather than cosmology or manvantara chronology.

What is the esoteric significance?

External ‘mala’ (impurity) reflects internal turbulence; when sattva is obscured, one becomes ‘prey’ to opposing forces—psychologically (vices) and socially (enemies).