Dharma-ākhyāna (Discourse on Dharma): Worthy Charity, Fruitless Gifts, and the Merit of Building Ponds
धर्मा बहुविधाः प्रोक्ताः पुण्यलोकप्रदायकाः । तथैव यातनाः प्रोक्ता असंख्या घोरदर्शताः ॥ ४५ ॥
dharmā bahuvidhāḥ proktāḥ puṇyalokapradāyakāḥ | tathaiva yātanāḥ proktā asaṃkhyā ghoradarśatāḥ || 45 ||
诸般法(dharma)已被宣说,能赐入功德善界;同样,无量无数的苦刑亦被描述,观之令人战栗。
Sanatkumara (teaching Narada in dialogue)
Vrata: none
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka
It frames dharma as a structured path that yields higher realms through merit, while also warning that adharma leads to innumerable, terrifying sufferings—urging moral vigilance and responsibility for karma.
Indirectly, it sets the ethical foundation for bhakti: devotion is strengthened by dharmic living and detachment from sin, because the text emphasizes real consequences for actions and the need to choose a purifying way of life.
No specific Vedanga is taught in this verse; it functions as a dharma-śāstra style summary of karma-phala—linking prescribed conduct (dharma) with outcomes (puṇya-loka vs. yātanā).