Shloka 17
Arjuna meets the Lokapālas, is tested by Indra, and is led to Amarāvatī for astra-śikṣā
Indraloka-gamana
यमाहु: सर्वभूतानां प्रकृते: प्रकृति धरुवम् । अनादिनिधन देवं प्रभुं नारायणं परम्
yam āhuḥ sarvabhūtānāṁ prakṛteḥ prakṛti dhruvam | anādinidhanaṁ devaṁ prabhuṁ nārāyaṇaṁ param ||
Vaiśampāyana sprach: „Jener höchste Herr Nārāyaṇa—anfangslos und endlos, der göttliche Gebieter—den die Weisen als unvergänglichen Urgrund aller Wesen und als Quelle der prakṛti preisen, wird als erhaben selbst über Brahmaloka verkündet. Seine Wohnstatt offenbart sich durch sein eigenes Leuchten; sie überstrahlt Sonne und Feuer. Nicht einmal die Götter schauen jene allleuchtende, glückverheißende Gestalt leicht; und für Devas wie Dānavas ist sein Anblick überaus schwer zu erlangen.“
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse asserts Nārāyaṇa/Viṣṇu as the beginningless, endless supreme Lord—beyond even Brahmaloka—whose abode is self-luminous and whose direct vision is difficult even for gods and dānavas, emphasizing transcendence and the limits of ordinary celestial power.
Vaiśampāyana is describing the supreme status and radiance of Nārāyaṇa, characterizing Him as the imperishable ground of beings and the source behind Prakṛti, while stressing that His realm and vision surpass what even divine beings can readily attain.