Narada Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 71

Rādhā-sambaddha-mantra-vyākhyā

Rādhā-Related Mantras Explained

Devanagari script

शून्यं साग्निनभश्चैव चरेण सहितं तथा । अंबु पश्चाद्वियत्तस्मान्नभश्च मरुदन्वितम् ॥ ७१ ॥

Transliteration

śūnyaṃ sāgninabhaścaiva careṇa sahitaṃ tathā | aṃbu paścādviyattasmānnabhaśca marudanvitam || 71 ||

Translation

من «الفراغ» ينشأ الفضاء مقترناً بالنار؛ وكذلك مع «cara» أي الحركة. ثم يأتي الماء؛ ومن ذلك الماء يبرز الفضاء/الأثير مرةً أخرى—وقد صار الآن مصحوباً بالريح.

Word by Word

• śūnyam: void; zero
• śūnyam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śūnya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन

• sa-agni-nabhaḥ: together with fire and sky
• sa-agni-nabhaḥ: Sahartha (सहार्थ/associative)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sa (अव्यय उपसर्गार्थ) + agni (प्रातिपदिक) + nabhas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुष ('अग्निनभसा सह' = with fire and sky)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक निपात (conjunction)

• eva: indeed
• eva: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: अवधारणार्थक निपात (emphatic particle)

• careṇa: with movement; by the moving
• careṇa: Karana (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: cara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd, Instrumental), एकवचन

• sahitam: accompanied; together
• sahitam: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sahita (कृदन्त, √sah/√dhā?; 'accompanied')
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; predicate/qualifier of śūnyam

• tathā: thus; likewise
• tathā: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tathā (अव्यय)
• Form: प्रकार/समुच्चयवाचक अव्यय (adverb: thus/also)

• ambu: water
• ambu: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ambu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन

• paścāt: afterwards
• paścāt: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: paścāt (अव्यय)
• Form: काल/क्रमवाचक अव्यय (afterwards)

• viyat: sky; ether
• viyat: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: viyat (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन

• tasmāt: from that
• tasmāt: Apadana (अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसक, पञ्चमी (5th, Ablative), एकवचन; 'from that'

• nabhaḥ: sky
• nabhaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nabhas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक निपात (conjunction)

• marut-anvitam: endowed with wind
• marut-anvitam: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: marut (प्रातिपदिक) + anvita (कृदन्त, √i with anu-; 'endowed/connected')
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; 'मरुता अन्वितम्' = endowed with wind

Speaker

Narada (teaching in a technical Vedanga-style enumeration)

Vrata Kalpa

Vrata: none

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: adbhuta

FAQs

What is the spiritual significance of this verse in Narada Purana?

It presents a technical cosmological sequence: from śūnya (undifferentiated emptiness) arise successive elemental conditions, showing how manifest reality is built through combinations (saṃyoga) of subtle principles like space, fire, motion, wind, and water.

How does this verse explain the path of devotion (Bhakti)?

While the verse is primarily cosmological (Vedanga-style), it supports Bhakti by grounding devotion in right knowledge (jñāna) of creation—encouraging the devotee to see the world as a structured manifestation, ultimately to be offered back to the Divine through worship and ritual purity.

What practical Vedic knowledge (Vedanga) is highlighted here?

It reflects a technical enumeration used in Vedic sciences—useful for ritual theory and cosmology that underlies disciplines like Jyotiṣa (Vedic astrology) and kalpa-style reasoning about elemental composition in rites and offerings.