Markandeya Purana — Adhyaya 8, Shloka 145

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

Sanskrit

अथापश्यत् खरं देहं हस्तिनं वानरं पशुम् । छागं विडालं कङ्कञ्च गामविं पक्षिणं कृमिम् ॥

Transliteration

athāpaśyat kharaṃ dehaṃ hastinaṃ vānaraṃ paśum / chāgaṃ viḍālaṃ kaṅkañ ca gāmaviṃ pakṣiṇaṃ kṛmim

Translation

随后他看见（众生受取）驴、象、猴与猛兽之身；又见受山羊、猫与鹭之身；亦有受牛、鸟与虫之身者。

Word by Word

• atha: then
• atha: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atha (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya, discourse particle/adverb (अनन्तरार्थक) ‘then/next’

• apaśyat: saw
• apaśyat: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: apa√dṛś (धातु)
• Form: Imperfect (लङ्), 3rd person, Singular, Parasmaipada

• kharaṃ: a donkey
• kharaṃ: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: khara (खर) (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular

• deham: a body
• deham: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deha (देह) (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular

• hastinam: an elephant
• hastinam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: hastin (हस्तिन्) (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• vānaram: a monkey
• vānaram: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vānara (वानर) (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• paśum: a beast/animal
• paśum: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: paśu (पशु) (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• chāgam: a goat
• chāgam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: chāga (छाग) (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• viḍālam: a cat
• viḍālam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: viḍāla (विडाल) (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• kaṅkam: a heron
• kaṅkam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kaṅka (कङ्क) (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya, conjunction

• gāmavīm: a cow (female bovine)
• gāmavīm: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gāmavī (गामवी) (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular

• pakṣiṇam: a bird
• pakṣiṇam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pakṣin (पक्षिन्) (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• kṛmim: a worm
• kṛmim: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṛmi (कृमि) (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

Speakers

• Narratorial voice within the frame (speaker not determinable from excerpt alone)

Verse Rasa

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

Key Themes

• Saṃsāra
• Transmigration
• Karmic diversity of births

FAQs

What is the philosophical or ethical takeaway?

By listing disparate embodiments, the text stresses that saṃsāra is not linear improvement; it is unstable and contingent on karma and dispositions, motivating restraint and dharmic living.

How does this fit the Pancalakshana (5 characteristics)?

Didactic narrative (Vamśānucarita/ākhyāna-style instruction) used to teach dharma through the spectacle of rebirth; not a cosmological Sarga passage.

What is the esoteric significance?

The variety of bodies suggests the jīva’s identification with guṇas: heaviness/servitude (donkey), pride/power (elephant), restlessness (monkey), predation (heron), and insignificance (worm).