Markandeya Purana — Adhyaya 8, Shloka 97

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

Sanskrit

दण्डप्रहारसम्भ्रान्तमतीव व्याकुलेन्द्रियम् ।

इष्टबन्धुवियोगार्तम् अनयन् निजपत्तनम् ॥

Transliteration

daṇḍaprahārasambhrāntamatīva vyākulendriyam |

iṣṭabandhuviyogārtam anayannija-pattanam ||

Translation

他因惩罚的鞭击而心神震荡，诸根极度扰乱，又因与挚爱之友与亲族分离而受苦，遂被押送回自己的城邑。

Word by Word

• दण्ड-प्रहार-सम्भ्रान्त-मतिम्: him whose mind was bewildered by blows of a staff
• दण्ड-प्रहार-सम्भ्रान्त-मतिम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: दण्ड (प्रातिपदिक) + प्रहार (प्रातिपदिक) + सम्भ्रान्त (प्रातिपदिक) + मति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (मति), द्वितीया, एकवचन; समासः (दण्डप्रहारात् सम्भ्रान्ता मतिः यस्य तम्) — अर्थतः बहुव्रीहिवत्, रूपतः समास-विशेषणम्

• इव: as if
• इव: Avyaya (अव्यय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इव (अव्यय)
• Form: उपमा-वाचक-अव्यय (comparative particle)

• व्याकुल-इन्द्रियम्: him whose senses were agitated
• व्याकुल-इन्द्रियम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: व्याकुल (प्रातिपदिक) + इन्द्रिय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; बहुव्रीहिः (व्याकुलानि इन्द्रियाणि यस्य तम्)

• इष्ट-बन्धु-वियोग-आर्तम्: afflicted by separation from dear kinsmen
• इष्ट-बन्धु-वियोग-आर्तम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: इष्ट (प्रातिपदिक) + बन्धु (प्रातिपदिक) + वियोग (प्रातिपदिक) + आर्त (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; समासः (इष्टबन्धूनां वियोगेन आर्तः)

• अनयन्: they led
• अनयन्: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: नी (धातु)
• Form: लङ् (Imperfect), प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन; परस्मैपदम्

• निज-पत्तनम्: to (their) own city
• निज-पत्तनम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: निज (प्रातिपदिक) + पत्तन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; कर्मधारयः (निजम् एव पत्तनम्)

Speakers

• Narrative voice within the Devi Mahatmyam frame (storytelling context about King Suratha; traditionally within Markandeya’s narration to the inquirers)

Verse Rasa

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

Key Themes

• Kingship and reversal of fortune
• Suffering born of loss and attachment
• Karmic consequence and political instability
• Prelude to refuge-seeking and Devi-upasana

FAQs

What is the philosophical or ethical takeaway?

Royal power and social standing are unstable; when fortune turns, even a king is reduced to helplessness. The verse highlights how external blows (daṇḍa) and internal bonds (attachment to loved ones) together generate agitation—setting up the need for a higher refuge and steadiness beyond worldly supports.

How does this fit the Pancalakshana (5 characteristics)?

This verse belongs primarily to the narrative-ethical (dharma/itihasa-style) layer used as a frame for the Devi Mahatmyam, not directly to sarga/pratisarga/manvantara/vamsha/vamshanucharita. Indirectly, it supports dharma and rajadharma themes rather than cosmological enumeration.

What is the esoteric significance?

The ‘blows of punishment’ and ‘agitated senses’ symbolize the jiva’s chastening by worldly forces and the turbulence of the indriyas under duḥkha. Separation from the ‘beloved’ points to the breaking of supports that the ego clings to—often the psychological precondition for turning toward the Devi (Shakti) as the stable ground of protection and insight.