Shloka 13

Atithi-prāpti and the Brāhmaṇa’s Deliberation on Triadic Dharma (अतिथिप्राप्तिः धर्मत्रयविचारश्च)

Devanagari script

स्मृत्वा कालपरीमाण् प्रवृत्ति ये समास्थिता: । दोष: कालपरीमाणे महानेष क्रियावताम्‌

Transliteration

Janamejaya uvāca: smṛtvā kālaparimāṇaṁ pravṛtti ye samāsthitāḥ | doṣaḥ kālaparimāṇe mahān eṣa kriyāvatām ||

Translation

阇那美阇耶说道：“那些心中执着于既定的时间尺度，立足于外向之行的道路（pravṛtti），以天界等有时限的果报为目标的人，有一大过失：对以行为本的人而言，其业果被拘限在时间的边界之内，因此是有限的、终将耗尽的。”

Word by Word

• स्मृत्वा: having remembered
• स्मृत्वा: Adhikarana
• Type: Verb
• Root: स्मृ (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वा (absolutive/gerund), कर्तरि

• कालपरिमाणम्: the measure/limit of time
• कालपरिमाणम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: काल-परिमाण
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• प्रवृत्तिम्: activity; the path of action
• प्रवृत्तिम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: प्रवृत्ति
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

• ये: who (those who)
• ये: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• समास्थिताः: have taken refuge in; are established in
• समास्थिताः: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: सम्-आ-स्था (धातु)
• Form: क्त (past passive participle, used actively), Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• दोषः: fault; defect
• दोषः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: दोष
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• कालपरिमाणे: in the time-limit/measure
• कालपरिमाणे: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: काल-परिमाण
• Form: Neuter, Locative, Singular

• महान्: great
• महान्: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: महत्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• एषः: this
• एषः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: एतद् (सर्वनाम)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• क्रियावताम्: of those engaged in action; of doers
• क्रियावताम्: Sampradana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: क्रियावत्
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Plural

Speaker

जनमेजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Janamejaya
• kāla (time)
• pravṛtti (path of action)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Actions pursued for time-limited rewards (like heaven) yield results that are themselves limited by time; this finitude is presented as a major flaw for those devoted to result-oriented activity.

What is happening in the narrative?

Janamejaya raises a reflective point about the limitation inherent in the pravṛtti-oriented pursuit of ritual and worldly merit: its fruits are enjoyed only within temporal bounds and therefore do not constitute an ultimate good.