Shloka 3

Description of Continents, Oceans, Regions, and the Measure of the World

Devanagari script

परस्परेण द्विगुणाः सर्वे द्वीपा द्विजर्षभाः । पर्वताश्च महाप्राज्ञाः समुद्रैः परिवारिताः

Transliteration

paraspareṇa dviguṇāḥ sarve dvīpā dvijarṣabhāḥ | parvatāśca mahāprājñāḥ samudraiḥ parivāritāḥ

Translation

হে দ্বিজশ্ৰেষ্ঠ! সকলো দ্বীপ একে-একে আগৰ দ্বীপতকৈ দ্বিগুণ বিস্তৃত; আৰু হে মহাপ্ৰাজ্ঞ, পৰ্বতসমূহ সাগৰদ্বাৰা চাৰিওফালে পৰিবেষ্টিত।

Word by Word

• paraspareṇa: mutually / with respect to each other
• paraspareṇa: Karaṇa (करण) (instrumental of comparison/measure)
• Type: Noun
• Root: paraspara (परस्पर प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग) (or masculine in usage), Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Singular (एकवचन); adverbial-instrumental: 'in relation to each other'

• dvi-guṇāḥ: double (in size/extent)
• dvi-guṇāḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: dvi (द्वि संख्या) + guṇa (गुण प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Plural (बहुवचन); द्विगु: 'two-fold/double' qualifying 'dvīpāḥ'

• sarve: all
• sarve: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva (सर्व प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Plural (बहुवचन); qualifying 'dvīpāḥ'

• dvīpāḥ: islands/continents
• dvīpāḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dvīpa (द्वीप प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Plural (बहुवचन)

• dvija-ṛṣabhāḥ: O best of the twice-born
• dvija-ṛṣabhāḥ: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dvija (द्विज प्रातिपदिक) + ṛṣabha (ऋषभ प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Vocative (8th/सम्बोधन), Plural (बहुवचन); तत्पुरुष: 'bulls among the twice-born' = 'best of brāhmaṇas'

• parvatāḥ: mountains
• parvatāḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: parvata (पर्वत प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Plural (बहुवचन)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Conjunction (समुच्चयबोधक अव्यय)

• mahā-prājñāḥ: great/illustrious
• mahā-prājñāḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mahā (महा) + prājña (प्राज्ञ प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Plural (बहुवचन); कर्मधारय: 'great' + 'wise/illustrious' qualifying 'parvatāḥ'

• samudraiḥ: by oceans
• samudraiḥ: Karaṇa (करण) (instrument of surrounding)
• Type: Noun
• Root: samudra (समुद्र प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Plural (बहुवचन)

• pari-vāritāḥ: surrounded/encircled
• pari-vāritāḥ: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa / Vidheyaviśeṣaṇa (विधेयविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pari + vṛ (वृ धातु) + kta (क्त-प्रत्यय)
• Form: Past passive participle (क्त-कृदन्त), Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Plural (बहुवचन); agrees with 'parvatāḥ' (and/or 'dvīpāḥ')

Speaker

Unspecified narrator (Paurāṇic speaker addressing a Brahmin interlocutor)

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Geographic Context

Type: celestial_realm

Sandhi Resolution Notes

Sandhi Resolution Notes: parvatāśca→parvatāḥ ca; no other mandatory sandhi splits.

FAQs

What does this verse teach about the structure of the world in Purāṇic cosmology?

It presents a cosmographic model where each dvīpa (continent/island-region) is described as twice the size of the previous one, with oceans forming enclosing boundaries around these regions.

Who is addressed by the term “dvijarṣabha” in this verse?

“Dvijarṣabha” literally means “bull among the twice-born,” a respectful epithet for an eminent Brahmin or learned interlocutor being addressed in the discourse.

Is there a direct bhakti or ethical instruction in this specific verse?

Not explicitly. This verse is primarily descriptive (cosmography), setting a framework for understanding the Purāṇic universe rather than giving a direct devotional or moral injunction.