Shloka 32
The Slaying of Hiraṇyākṣa and the Triumph of Varāha
मया यथानूक्तमवादि ते हरे: कृतावतारस्य सुमित्र चेष्टितम् । यथा हिरण्याक्ष उदारविक्रमो महामृधे क्रीडनवन्निराकृत: ॥ ३२ ॥
mayā yathānūktam avādi te hareḥ kṛtāvatārasya sumitra ceṣṭitam yathā hiraṇyākṣa udāra-vikramo mahā-mṛdhe krīḍanavan nirākṛtaḥ
Maitreya continued: Dear Vidura, just as I heard it, I have spoken to you the auspicious lila of Lord Hari’s descent as Adi-Varāha—how, in the great battle, He cast aside the extraordinarily valiant Hiraṇyākṣa as though he were a mere plaything.
Here the sage Maitreya admits that he explained the incident of the killing of Hiraṇyākṣa by the Supreme Personality of Godhead as a straight narration; he did not manufacture anything or add interpretation, but explained whatever he had heard from his spiritual master. Thus he accepted as bona fide the system of paramparā, or receiving the transcendental message in disciplic succession. Unless received by this bona fide process of hearing from a spiritual master, the statement of an ācārya or preceptor cannot be valid.
FAQs
This verse summarizes that Hari, having descended as an avatāra, effortlessly cast aside the powerful Hiraṇyākṣa in the great battle—showing the Lord’s supreme strength and divine play.
Maitreya is concluding his narration to Vidura, affirming that he has faithfully recounted the avatāra-līlā of Hari—especially the outcome of the Varāha–Hiraṇyākṣa combat.
A devotee learns humility and trust: even seemingly overwhelming forces can be removed by divine will, so one should stay aligned with dharma and remember the Lord’s protecting power.