Markandeya Purana — Adhyaya 8, Shloka 108

Adhyaya 8 — Harishchandra’s Trial: Truth, the Sale of Family, and Bondage to a Chandala

Sanskrit

पिशाच-भूत-वेताल-डाकिनी-यक्षसङ्कुलम् । गृध्रगोमायुसङ्कीर्णं श्ववृन्दपरिवारितम् ॥

Transliteration

piśāca-bhūta-vetāla-ḍākinī-yakṣa-saṅkulam / gṛdhra-gomāyu-saṅkīrṇaṃ śva-vṛnda-parivāritam

Translation

其地拥塞着毗舍遮、鬼灵、吠陀罗、荼吉尼与夜叉；秃鹫与豺狼充满其间，四周又为犬群所环绕。

Word by Word

• पिशाचभूतवेतालडाकिनीयक्षसङ्कुलम्: crowded with piśācas, ghosts, vetālas, ḍākinīs, and yakṣas
• पिशाचभूतवेतालडाकिनीयक्षसङ्कुलम्: विशेषण (Adjectival)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पिशाच-भूत-वेताल-डाकिनी-यक्ष-सङ्कुल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: समाहार-द्वन्द्व (पिशाचादयः) + विशेषण ‘सङ्कुल’; नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; qualifying śmaśānam

• गृध्रगोमायुसङ्कीर्णम्: strewn with vultures and jackals
• गृध्रगोमायुसङ्कीर्णम्: विशेषण (Adjectival)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: गृध्र-गोमायु-सङ्कीर्ण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: द्वन्द्व (गृध्र+गोमायु) + क्त-कृदन्त (सम्-√कीर्), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; ‘strewn with vultures and jackals’

• श्ववृन्दपरिवारितम्: surrounded by packs of dogs
• श्ववृन्दपरिवारितम्: विशेषण (Adjectival)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: श्व-वृन्द-परिवारित (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (श्वानां वृन्देन) + क्त-कृदन्त (परि-√वृ ‘to surround’ → परिवारित), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

Speakers

• Narrator voice

Verse Rasa

{ "primaryRasa": "bhayanaka", "secondaryRasa": "adbhuta", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }

Key Themes

• Bhūta-preta taxonomy
• Charnel-ground cosmology
• Fear and ritual boundary

FAQs

What is the philosophical or ethical takeaway?

The text maps a moral-psychic landscape: where dharma is neglected and death is mishandled, fear and disorder dominate. It also reflects traditional Indian classifications of subtle beings tied to place and ritual condition.

How does this fit the Pancalakshana (5 characteristics)?

Ākhyāna/Upākhyāna (narrative description) with folkloric cosmology elements.

What is the esoteric significance?

These beings can be read as externalizations of inner vṛttis—terror, craving, and obsession—that arise when one approaches impermanence without clarity. The ‘surrounding packs’ image suggests how fear can close in on the unsteady mind.