Markandeya Purana — Adhyaya 50, Shloka 82

Adhyaya 50 — Mind-Born Progeny, Svayambhuva Manu’s Lineage, and Brahmā’s Ordinance to Duḥsaha (Alakṣmī’s Retinue)

Sanskrit

यत्रोक्षा चन्दनं वीणा आदर्शो मधुसर्पिषी ।

विषाज्यताम्रपात्राणि तद्गृहं न तवाश्रयः ॥

Transliteration

yatrokṣā candanaṃ vīṇā ādarśo madhu-sarpiṣī | viṣājyatāmra-pātrāṇi tad-gṛhaṃ na tavāśrayaḥ ||

Translation

凡有净水洒净、檀香膏、维纳琴、明镜、蜂蜜与酥油，并备有可用之铜器的家宅——那并非你的庇护处（你不能居住其间）。

Word by Word

• yatra: where
• yatra: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yatra (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; सम्बन्धबोधक-अव्यय (relative adverb: 'where')

• ukṣā: sprinkling/aspersion (rite)
• ukṣā: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ukṣā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; प्रथमा (1st/Nominative); एकवचन; (उक्षण/प्रोक्षणार्थे—sprinkling; also can mean 'bull', but context favors sprinkling/holy aspersion)

• candanam: sandalwood
• candanam: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: candana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; एकवचन

• vīṇā: lute, vīṇā
• vīṇā: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vīṇā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; एकवचन

• ādarśaḥ: mirror
• ādarśaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ādarśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; एकवचन

• madhu-sarpiṣī: honey and ghee
• madhu-sarpiṣī: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: madhu + sarpis (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; द्विवचन (Dual); इतरेतर-द्वन्द्वः (madhu and ghee)

• viṣa-ajya-tāmra-pātrāṇi: poison, ghee, and copper vessels
• viṣa-ajya-tāmra-pātrāṇi: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: viṣa + ajya + tāmra + pātra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; बहुवचन; समाहार/इतरेतर-द्वन्द्वसमासः (various items: poison, ghee, copper-vessels)

• tat-gṛham: that house
• tat-gṛham: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tat (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) + gṛha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा/द्वितीया; एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः—तत् गृहम् ('that house')

• na: not
• na: Pratiṣedha (प्रतिषेध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निषेधार्थक-निपात

• tava: your
• tava: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yusmad (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: मध्यमपुरुष-सर्वनाम; षष्ठी (6th/Genitive); एकवचन

• āśrayaḥ: abode, refuge
• āśrayaḥ: Pradhāna (विधेय/प्रधाना)
• Type: Noun
• Root: āśraya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; एकवचन; विधेय (predicate nominative)

Speakers

• Didactic voice addressing a Yakṣa/inauspicious presence

Primary Deities

• Lakṣmī (implied)

Shakti Aspects

• Lakṣmī implied through auspicious markers

Key Themes

• Auspiciousness
• Domestic ritual items
• Culture (music)
• Śrī (prosperity)

FAQs

What is the philosophical or ethical takeaway?

A home is elevated by ritual purity (sprinkling), refinement (sandal, mirror), nourishment and hospitality (honey, ghee), and orderly domestic economy (usable vessels). Such cultivated order repels inauspiciousness.

How does this fit the Pancalakṣaṇa (5 characteristics)?

Ancillary dharma/ācāra guidance rather than cosmology or dynastic history.

What is the esoteric significance?

Music (vīṇā) and fragrance (candana) indicate sattva; copper vessels and ghee/honey indicate maintained ‘ojas’ of the household—subtle prosperity that blocks entry of Alakṣmī-like forces.