Shloka 80

अर्जुनस्य अन्त्येष्टि, द्वारकाप्लावनम्, कलिप्रवेशः, कालोपदेशः

Devanagari script

तं दृष्ट्वा गूहमानानां यासां हासः स्फुटो ऽभवत् ताः शशाप मुनिः कोपम् अवाप्य कुरुनन्दन

Transliteration

taṃ dṛṣṭvā gūhamānānāṃ yāsāṃ hāsaḥ sphuṭo 'bhavat tāḥ śaśāpa muniḥ kopam avāpya kurunandana

Translation

فلما رأينه، أولئك النسوة اللواتي كنّ يختبئن وقد انفجر ضحكهن فجأة، لعنهنّ الحكيم إذ ثار غضبه في صدره، يا بهجةَ آلِ كورو.

Word by Word

तम्him

दृष्ट्वाhaving seen

गूहमानानाम्of those who were hiding

यासाम्of whom

हासःlaughter

स्फुटःopen / audible

अभवत्arose / happened

ताःthem

शशापcursed

मुनिःthe sage

कोपम्anger

अवाप्यhaving attained (becoming possessed of)

कुरुनन्दनO joy of the Kurus

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (narrating) to Maitreya; with an apostrophic address to a Kuru descendant in the verse style

Characters & Entities

A sage (muni)

Women/maidens (unnamed)

Kuru lineage (Kurunandana as addressee)

FAQs

What is the significance of a sage’s curse in the Vishnu Purana’s dynasty narratives?

This verse shows rishi-tejas functioning as moral causality: ridicule or disrespect toward ascetic authority triggers consequences that redirect personal fate and, by extension, lineage history.

How does Sage Parāśara explain karmic consequence through narrative events like laughter and cursing?

By linking an immediate ethical lapse (open laughter at someone) to an immediate spiritual reaction (the sage’s wrath and curse), Parāśara frames history as governed by dharma and karma rather than accident.

What is the theological importance of Lord Vishnu in this context?

Even when Vishnu is not named, the Purana’s historiography assumes a Vishnu-ordered cosmos where dharma is conserved—events like curses become instruments through which universal order and rightful sovereignty are maintained.