Narada Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 46

Pāpa-bheda, Naraka-yātanā, Mahāpātaka-vicāra, Atonement Limits, Daśa-vidhā Bhakti, and Gaṅgā as Final Remedy

Devanagari script

शान्तैस्तु निष्कृतिर्दृष्टा प्रायश्चितादिकल्पनैः । प्रायश्चित्तविहीनानि पापानि श्रृणु भूपते ॥ ४६ ॥

Transliteration

śāntaistu niṣkṛtirdṛṣṭā prāyaścitādikalpanaiḥ | prāyaścittavihīnāni pāpāni śrṛṇu bhūpate || 46 ||

Translation

Sự chuộc tội (niṣkṛti) quả thực được giảng dạy thông qua các nghi lễ an bình (śānti) và các hình thức sám hối (prāyaścitta) đã được quy định. Giờ đây, tâu Đại vương, hãy lắng nghe về những tội lỗi mà không có sự sám hối nào được đặt ra.

Word by Word

• śāntaiḥ: by the calm/wise (sages)
• śāntaiḥ: Karaṇa (करण) / Kartṛ (कर्ता) in passive sense
• Type: Noun
• Root: śānta (प्रातिपदिक/कृदन्त)
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Plural; “by the pacified/wise ones” (śānta = calm, restrained)

• tu: but/indeed
• tu: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: Adversative/contrast particle (तु)

• niṣkṛtiḥ: expiation
• niṣkṛtiḥ: Karta (कर्ता) — subject of dṛṣṭā
• Type: Noun
• Root: niṣkṛti (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular; “expiation/remedy”

• dṛṣṭā: has been prescribed/seen
• dṛṣṭā: Kriyā (क्रिया) — predicate (passive sense)
• Type: Verb
• Root: dṛś (दृश् धातु) + kta (क्त)
• Form: Past passive participle (क्त-कृदन्त), Feminine, Nominative, Singular; agrees with niṣkṛtiḥ: “has been seen/laid down”

• prāyaścitta-ādi-kalpanaiḥ: by arrangements such as penances
• prāyaścitta-ādi-kalpanaiḥ: Karaṇa (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prāyaścitta (प्रातिपदिक) + ādi (प्रातिपदिक) + kalpanā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Plural; समाहार/तत्पुरुष-समासः—“prāyaścittādyāḥ kalpanāḥ” (arrangements such as penances); “by means of penance etc. arrangements”

• prāyaścitta-vihīnāni: devoid of expiation
• prāyaścitta-vihīnāni: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण) of pāpāni
• Type: Adjective
• Root: prāyaścitta (प्रातिपदिक) + vihīna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Nominative/Accusative (1st/2nd), Plural; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः—“prāyaścittena vihīnāni” (devoid of expiation)

• pāpāni: sins
• pāpāni: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pāpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Plural; object of śrṛṇu

• śrṛṇu: hear
• śrṛṇu: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: śru (श्रु धातु)
• Form: Imperative (लोट्), 2nd person (मध्यमपुरुष), Singular; parasmaipada

• bhūpate: O king
• bhūpate: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhūpati (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Vocative (8th/सम्बोधन), Singular

Speaker

Sanatkumara (in instruction to the king, as framed in the Narada Purana dialogue tradition)

Vrata Kalpa

Vrata: none

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka

Characters & Entities

• Sanatkumara

FAQs

What is the spiritual significance of this verse in Narada Purana?

It sets a dharmic boundary: while many faults can be purified through śānti and prāyaścitta, some actions are so grave that scripture does not assign a routine expiation—urging vigilance, restraint, and deep ethical responsibility.

How does this verse explain the path of devotion (Bhakti)?

Indirectly, it emphasizes humility before dharma: devotion is not a license to ignore conduct. True bhakti supports purification through prescribed discipline, and it warns that certain grave wrongs cannot be treated as easily “washed away.”

What practical Vedic knowledge (Vedanga) is highlighted here?

It reflects Kalpa (a Vedāṅga) in practice—rules for ritual procedure, including śānti rites and prāyaścitta formulations—while also indicating that not every transgression has a codified ritual remedy.