Shloka 3

Narasiṃha’s Greatness and the Slaying of Hiraṇyakaśipu

Boon, Portents, and Cosmic Restoration

Devanagari script

दशवर्षसहस्राणि दशवर्षशतानि च । जलवासी समभवत्स्नानमौनधृतव्रतः

Transliteration

daśavarṣasahasrāṇi daśavarṣaśatāni ca | jalavāsī samabhavatsnānamaunadhṛtavrataḥ

Translation

Zehntausend Jahre lang, und dazu noch zehnmal hundert Jahre, lebte er im Wasser und hielt Gelübde — standhaft in den Bade-Riten und in der Zucht des Schweigens.

Word by Word

• daśa-varṣa-sahasrāṇi: ten thousand years (lit. thousands of ten years)
• daśa-varṣa-sahasrāṇi: Kāla-adhikaraṇa (कालाधिकरण/Duration)
• Type: Noun
• Root: daśa (प्रातिपदिक) + varṣa (प्रातिपदिक) + sahasra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), बहुवचन; द्विगु-समासः (numerical compound) — ‘दशवर्षाणां सहस्राणि’ (ten-year thousands)

• daśa-varṣa-śatāni: a hundred (sets) of ten years
• daśa-varṣa-śatāni: Kāla-adhikaraṇa (कालाधिकरण/Duration)
• Type: Noun
• Root: daśa (प्रातिपदिक) + varṣa (प्रातिपदिक) + śata (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), बहुवचन; द्विगु-समासः — ‘दशवर्षाणां शतानि’ (hundreds of ten years)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Conjunction)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चय (conjunction)

• jala-vāsī: dwelling in water
• jala-vāsī: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jala (प्रातिपदिक) + vāsin (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः—‘जले वसति’ (dweller in water)

• samabhavat: became, was
• samabhavat: Kriya (क्रिया/Action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sam-√bhū (धातु)
• Form: लङ् (Imperfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• snāna-mauna-dhṛta-vrataḥ: observing the vow of bathing and silence
• snāna-mauna-dhṛta-vrataḥ: Karta (कर्ता/Subject qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: snāna (प्रातिपदिक) + mauna (प्रातिपदिक) + dhṛta (कृदन्त, √dhṛ धारणे) + vrata (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; बहुव्रीहिः—‘स्नानं च मौनं च धृतं व्रतं यस्य’ (whose vow consists of bathing and silence, observed/held)

Speaker

Unspecified in the provided excerpt (context needed to identify the dialogue pair)

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka

Geographic Context

Type: river

Sandhi Resolution Notes

Sandhi Resolution Notes: समभवत्स्नानमौनधृतव्रतः = समभवत् + स्नान-मौन-धृत-व्रतः.

FAQs

What practice is described in this verse?

It describes long-term ascetic observance: living in water (jalavāsa) while maintaining vows centered on ritual bathing (snāna) and silence (mauna).

What is the spiritual emphasis of the verse?

The verse emphasizes sustained self-discipline (vrata) and austerity over immense periods of time, highlighting endurance, restraint, and ritual purity.

Who is being described as living in the water?

The individual is not named in the excerpt provided. Identifying the person requires the surrounding verses or confirmation of the chapter’s narrative context.