Ramayana — Bala Kanda, Sarga 59, Shloka 18

विश्वामित्रस्य शरणागति-प्रशंसा तथा वासिष्ठपुत्र-शापः

Visvamitra grants refuge; the curse upon Vasishta’s sons

Devanagari script

अद्य ते कालपाशेन नीता वैवस्वतक्षयम्।सप्तजातिशतान्येव मृतपस्सन्तु सर्वश:।।1.59.18।।

Transliteration

adya te kāla-pāśena nītā vaivasvata-kṣayam | sapta-jāti-śatāny eva mṛta-pāḥ santu sarvaśaḥ || 1.59.18 ||

Translation

Hôm nay, bị thòng lọng của Tử thần trói buộc, nguyện chúng bị dẫn về cõi của Vaivasvata (Diêm Vương); và trong bảy trăm kiếp, khắp mọi nẻo, nguyện chúng sống như kẻ ăn xác chết.

Word by Word

• adya: today
• adya: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: adya (अव्यय)
• Form: Kāla-avyaya (Temporal adverb/कालवाचक)

• te: they
• te: Karta (कर्ता/Subject of santu; also of nītāḥ in passive sense)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Bahuvacana; sarvanāma

• kāla-pāśena: by the noose of Death/Time
• kāla-pāśena: Karaṇa (करण/Instrument)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kāla (प्रातिपदिक) + pāśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Tatpuruṣa (तत्पुरुष; kālasya pāśaḥ), Puṃliṅga, Tṛtīyā (Instrumental), Ekavacana

• nītāḥ: led/brought
• nītāḥ: Karta (कर्ता/Subject complement; ‘having been led’)
• Type: Verb
• Root: nī (नी धातु)
• Form: Kta (क्त) past passive participle, Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Bahuvacana; karmavācya (passive)

• vaivasvata-kṣayam: to Yama’s abode
• vaivasvata-kṣayam: Karma (कर्म/Goal with nītāḥ)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vaivasvata (प्रातिपदिक) + kṣaya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Tatpuruṣa (तत्पुरुष; vaivasvatasya kṣayaḥ = Yama’s abode), Puṃliṅga, Dvitīyā, Ekavacana

• sapta-jāti-śatāni: seven hundred births
• sapta-jāti-śatāni: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण/Extent: ‘for seven hundred births’)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sapta (प्रातिपदिक) + jāti (प्रातिपदिक) + śata (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Dvigu-samāsa (द्विगु; numerical compound), Napuṃsakaliṅga, Prathamā/Dvitīyā, Bahuvacana (here as measure/extent)

• eva: indeed/only
• eva: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Emphasis)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: Avadhāraṇa-avyaya (Emphatic particle/अवधारण)

• mṛta-paḥ: corpse-eaters
• mṛta-paḥ: Karta (कर्ता/Predicate noun with santu)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mṛta (प्रातिपदिक) + pa (पा/प धातु-निष्पन्न प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Tatpuruṣa (तत्पुरुष; mṛtān pāti/‘feeds on the dead’), Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Bahuvacana (collective sense with te)

• santu: let them be
• santu: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: as (अस् धातु)
• Form: Loṭ-lakāra (Imperative/लोट्; benedictive/command sense), Prathama-puruṣa (3rd), Bahuvacana, Parasmaipada

• sarvaśaḥ: in every way/entirely
• sarvaśaḥ: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: sarvaśas (अव्यय)
• Form: Prakāra-avyaya (Manner adverb/प्रकारवाचक)

Context

Reborn as the merciless race of mushtikas, feeding on the flesh of dogs, hideous and deformed, they shall wander in these worlds.

Characters & Entities

• Kāla (Death/Time)
• Vaivasvata (Yama)
• Vasiṣṭha’s sons

FAQs

What is the core ethical principle (Dharma) in this verse?

Actions and speech generate consequences (karma); the verse also cautions that punitive power, when driven by anger, risks becoming ethically excessive.

What is the narrative situation?

Viśvāmitra utters a curse specifying death and prolonged degraded rebirths for the offenders.

Which character virtue is emphasized?

The narrative highlights the fearful efficacy of ascetic speech (vāg-bala), indirectly teaching that such power should be governed by dharma.