Srimad Bhagavatam — Ashtama Skandha, Shloka 7

Matsya-avatāra: The Lord as Fish Saves the Vedas and Guides Satyavrata

Devanagari script

आसीदतीतकल्पान्ते ब्राह्मो नैमित्तिको लय: । समुद्रोपप्लुतास्तत्र लोका भूरादयो नृप ॥ ७ ॥

Transliteration

āsīd atīta-kalpānte brāhmo naimittiko layaḥ samudropaplutās tatra lokā bhūr-ādayo nṛpa

Translation

O King, at the end of the previous kalpa, when Brahmā’s day came to its close, a naimittika annihilation occurred, and the worlds beginning with Bhū-loka were flooded by the waters of the ocean.

Synonyms

• āsīt: there was
• āsīt: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: as (धातु)
• Form: Laṅ-lakāra (Imperfect/past), Prathama-puruṣa, Ekavacana; parasmaipada

• atīta-kalpa-ante: at the end of the past kalpa
• atīta-kalpa-ante: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण/Time-location)
• Type: Noun
• Root: atīta + kalpa + anta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṁliṅga, Saptamī vibhakti (Locative/7th), Ekavacana; ‘at the end of the past kalpa’

• brāhmaḥ: pertaining to Brahmā
• brāhmaḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: brāhma (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṁliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; agrees with layaḥ

• naimittikaḥ: occasional (periodic)
• naimittikaḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: naimittika (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṁliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; agrees with layaḥ

• layaḥ: dissolution
• layaḥ: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: laya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṁliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana

• samudra-upaplutāḥ: flooded by the ocean
• samudra-upaplutāḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: samudra + upapluta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṁliṅga, Prathamā, Bahuvacana; agrees with lokāḥ; ‘flooded by the ocean’

• tatra: there
• tatra: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण/Location)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; deśa-avyaya (locative adverb)

• lokāḥ: worlds
• lokāḥ: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: loka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṁliṅga, Prathamā, Bahuvacana

• bhūḥ-ādayaḥ: Bhū and the others (worlds)
• bhūḥ-ādayaḥ: Karta (कर्ता/Subject; apposition to lokāḥ)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhū + ādi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṁliṅga, Prathamā, Bahuvacana; ‘Bhū and others’ (elliptic list)

• nṛpa: O king
• nṛpa: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन/Address)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nṛpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṁliṅga, Sambodhana (Vocative), Ekavacana

Characters & Entities

• Parīkṣit Mahārāja
• Brahmā

FAQs

What does the Srimad Bhagavatam say about naimittika pralaya (occasional dissolution)?

This verse states that at the end of a kalpa there is a Brahmā-related, periodic dissolution in which the worlds beginning with Bhūrloka are submerged by ocean waters.

Why did Śukadeva Gosvāmī describe the flood and dissolution to King Parīkṣit?

He is setting the cosmic background for the Matsya-avatāra narrative, explaining the conditions (a great inundation at kalpa’s end) in which the Lord’s protective pastime unfolds.

Practical application of remembering pralaya in modern life?

It cultivates detachment and urgency for bhakti—recognizing that worldly arrangements are temporary and that lasting shelter is found in devotion to the Lord.