Shloka 104

Adhyaya 8 — Harishchandra’s Trial: Truth, the Sale of Family, and Bondage to a Chandala

Sanskrit

चण्डालेनानुशिष्टश्व मृतचेलापहारीणा । शवागमनमन्विच्छन्निह तिष्ठ दिवानिशम् ॥

Transliteration

caṇḍālenānuśiṣṭaśva mṛtacelāpahāriṇā / śavāgamanam anvicchan iha tiṣṭha divāniśam

Translation

Được một Caṇḍāla—kẻ trộm vải liệm của người chết—chỉ dạy, ông ta mong chờ xác chết được đưa đến và ở lại nơi ấy suốt ngày đêm.

Word by Word

• चण्डालेन: by a caṇḍāla (outcaste)
• चण्डालेन: करण (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: चण्डाल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (करण/सह), एकवचन; Instrumental singular

• अनुशिष्टः: having been instructed/ordered
• अनुशिष्टः: विशेषण (Adjectival to implied ‘त्वम्’)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अनु-√शास् (धातु) + क्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (क्त-प्रत्यय), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; past passive participle ‘instructed/ordered’

• च: and
• च: सम्बन्ध (Connector/समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्यय; conjunction

• मृतचेलापहारीणा: by a stealer of a dead man’s cloth
• मृतचेलापहारीणा: करण (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मृत-चेल-अपहारी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (मृतस्य चेलम् → मृतचेलम्; तस्य अपहारी), पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचन; Instrumental singular

• शवागमनम्: the coming/arrival of a corpse
• शवागमनम्: कर्म (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शव-आगमन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (शवस्य आगमनम्), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; Accusative singular

• अन्विच्छन्: seeking
• अन्विच्छन्: कर्ता (Agent/कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: अनु-√इष्/√इच्छ् (धातु) + शतृ (कृदन्त)
• Form: वर्तमानकालिक कृदन्त (शतृ), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; present active participle ‘seeking’ (agreeing with implied ‘त्वम्’)

• इह: here
• इह: अधिकरण (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इह (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक-अव्यय; adverb of place

• तिष्ठ: stay/stand
• तिष्ठ: क्रिया (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √स्था (धातु)
• Form: लोट्-लकार (आज्ञार्थ), मध्यम-पुरुष, एकवचन; imperative 2nd sg

• दिवा: by day
• दिवा: कालाधिकरण (Time/काल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: दिवा (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्यय; adverb ‘by day’

• निशम्: at night
• निशम्: कालाधिकरण (Time/काल)
• Type: Noun
• Root: निशा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; used adverbially ‘at night’

Speakers

• Narrator voice (frame-speakers not identifiable from excerpt alone)

Verse Rasa

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

Key Themes

• Cremation-ground imagery
• Social marginality (Caṇḍāla)
• Auspicious/inauspicious spaces
• Moral tension around death-rites

FAQs

What is the philosophical or ethical takeaway?

The passage foregrounds a descent into liminal, dharmically ambiguous space (the realm of death and impurity). It hints at the danger of seeking gain through contact with death, while also showing how human aims can be redirected by marginal figures who know the cremation-ground’s rules.

How does this fit the Pancalakshana (5 characteristics)?

Primarily Ākhyāna/Upākhyāna (narrative episode) rather than Sarga/Pratisarga/Manvantara/Vaṃśa/Vaṃśānucarita. It functions as a moral-psychological scene-setting within the Purāṇic storytelling mode.

What is the esoteric significance?

The cremation-ground (śmaśāna) is a classic symbol of confronting impermanence and fear. Seeking a ‘corpse’ can signify seeking power through transgressive means; the vigil ‘day and night’ emphasizes obsession and the suspension of ordinary social order.