Shloka 21
Means to Liberation: Supremacy of Hari, Proper Salutations, and Purāṇic Authority
सूत उवाच / आदौ वन्द्यः सर्ववेदैकवेद्यो वेदे शास्त्रे सेतिहासे पुराणे / सत्तां प्रायो विष्णुरेवैक एव प्रकाशते ऽतो नम्य एको हरिर्हि
sūta uvāca / ādau vandyaḥ sarvavedaikavedyo vede śāstre setihāse purāṇe / sattāṃ prāyo viṣṇurevaika eva prakāśate 'to namya eko harirhi
Sūta said: “In the beginning, the One worthy of reverence—known through all the Vedas alone—is declared in the Veda, in the śāstras, in the Itihāsas, and in the Purāṇas. Indeed, as the supreme Reality, Viṣṇu alone is chiefly revealed; therefore the One Hari alone is to be bowed to.”
Sūta
Concept: Sarva-vedaika-vedya: Viṣṇu/Hari is the single knowable Reality chiefly revealed by all authoritative texts; therefore He is the primary object of reverence.
Vedantic Theme: Brahman/Īśvara as the one tattva; śāstra-tātparya (overall purport) culminating in the supreme Lord.
Application: Read diverse teachings through a unifying lens: seek the central purport (tātparya) and orient devotion/ethics toward the highest reality rather than fragmentary aims.
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
Type: scriptural horizon (Veda–Śāstra–Itihāsa–Purāṇa)
Related Themes: Garuda Purana 3.1.22-23 (clarifying supremacy and relation of other deities)
FAQs
It asserts that across Veda, śāstra, Itihāsa, and Purāṇa, the ultimate Reality is chiefly revealed as Viṣṇu (Hari), who alone is worthy of worship.
By explicitly citing multiple scriptural categories—Veda, śāstra, Itihāsa, and Purāṇa—as consistently pointing to Viṣṇu as the primary revealed truth.
Ground one’s practice in a clear spiritual center: cultivate reverence, remembrance, and ethical living as offerings to Hari, aligning study and devotion with a single highest aim.