Shloka 11
Characteristics of the King and His Servants
Rāja-dharma, Nīti, and Ethical Revenue
निः शङ्कं किं मनुष्याः कुरुत परहितं युक्तमग्रे हितं यन्मोदध्वं कामिनीभिर्मदनशरहता मन्दमन्दातिदृष्ट्या / मा पापं संकुरुध्वं द्विजहरिपरमाः संभजध्वं सदैव आयुर्निः शेषमेति स्खलति जलघटीभूतमृत्युच्छलेन
niḥ śaṅkaṃ kiṃ manuṣyāḥ kuruta parahitaṃ yuktamagre hitaṃ yanmodadhvaṃ kāminībhirmadanaśarahatā mandamandātidṛṣṭyā / mā pāpaṃ saṃkurudhvaṃ dvijahariparamāḥ saṃbhajadhvaṃ sadaiva āyurniḥ śeṣameti skhalati jalaghaṭībhūtamṛtyucchalena
众人啊——为何无决心而活？当行利他之事，择取真正有益于来世之善。莫沉溺女色之乐，被爱神迦摩之箭所伤，又随那柔媚诱人的目光而去。莫堆积罪业；当敬奉二次生者（婆罗门等），以哈利（毗湿奴）为至上，恒常礼拜——因为寿命终将耗尽，且如罐中之水，被死亡的浪潮震荡而滑落流失。
Lord Vishnu (teaching Garuda/Vinata-putra)
Concept: Choose parahita and future welfare; avoid kāma-driven indulgence and pāpa; honor dvijas and worship Hari as supreme because life rapidly diminishes.
Vedantic Theme: Śreyas vs preyas; bhakti as the stabilizing refuge amid kāla and mṛtyu; karma-śuddhi through restraint and right action.
Application: Practice self-control (brahmacarya/indriya-nigraha), serve others, avoid harmful actions, maintain daily Hari-smaraṇa and respectful conduct toward teachers/learned.
Primary Rasa: raudra
Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka
Related Themes: Garuda Purana ethical exhortations preceding/alongside Preta-kalpa: warnings about kāma, pāpa, and the need for Hari-bhakti (general parallel motifs)
FAQs
This verse frames sin as a self-built burden that becomes urgent to avoid because lifespan is steadily consumed; therefore one should choose parahita (benefit of others) and devotion to Hari instead of accumulating pāpa.
It compares life to water in a jar that can spill at any moment when “death surges,” teaching that time is not stable; hence worship (saṃbhajana) and dharmic choices must be made now, not postponed.
Prioritize actions that help others, restrain impulse-driven indulgence, reduce harmful habits that create guilt and karmic consequences, and keep a steady daily practice of remembrance/worship of Vishnu.