Shloka 54

Devanagari script

हिरण्यगर्भपुरुषप्रधानव्यक्तरूपिणे ॐ नमो वासुदेवाय शुद्धज्ञानस्वभाविने

Transliteration

hiraṇyagarbhapuruṣapradhānavyaktarūpiṇe oṃ namo vāsudevāya śuddhajñānasvabhāvine

Translation

Om—salutations to Vāsudeva, who bears as His own forms Hiraṇyagarbha, the cosmic Puruṣa, Pradhāna, and the manifest universe; whose very essence is stainless, self-luminous knowledge.

Word by Word

• हिरण्यगर्भपुरुषप्रधानव्यक्तरूपिणे: to (Him) whose form is Hiraṇyagarbha, Puruṣa, Pradhāna and the manifest
• हिरण्यगर्भपुरुषप्रधानव्यक्तरूपिणे: Sampradāna (Recipient/Dative)
• Type: Noun
• Root: हिरण्यगर्भ-पुरुष-प्रधान-व्यक्त-रूपिन् (प्रातिपदिक; बहुपदसमास)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; चतुर्थी (सम्प्रदान) विभक्ति; एकवचन; विशेषणात्मक नाम (dative: “to the one whose form is …”)

• ॐ: Om
• ॐ: Mantra-pada (Liturgical particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ॐ (अव्यय/प्रणव)
• Form: अव्यय; प्रणव (sacred syllable)

• नमः: salutation
• नमः: Kriyā (Salutation act)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: नमस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययप्राय प्रयोग; नमस्कारार्थ निपात (indeclinable used in salutation; governs dative)

• वासुदेवाय: to Vāsudeva
• वासुदेवाय: Sampradāna (Recipient/Dative)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वासुदेव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; चतुर्थी (सम्प्रदान) विभक्ति; एकवचन (to Vāsudeva)

• शुद्धज्ञानस्वभाविने: to Him whose nature is pure knowledge
• शुद्धज्ञानस्वभाविने: Sampradāna (Recipient/Dative)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शुद्ध-ज्ञान-स्वभाविन् (प्रातिपदिक; शुद्ध + ज्ञान + स्वभाविन्)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; चतुर्थी (सम्प्रदान) विभक्ति; एकवचन; विशेषण (whose nature is pure knowledge)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (teaching Maitreya; verse occurs within a stotra praising Vishnu’s cosmic identity)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: The specific mantra to be used as japa and its theological meaning

Teaching: Devotional

Quality: revealing

Cosmological Context

Creation Stage: Primary

Cosmic Hierarchy: Brahmanda (universe)

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Vāsudeva is praised as the one who assumes (or contains) Hiraṇyagarbha, Puruṣa, Pradhāna, and the manifest cosmos, being of the nature of pure knowledge.

Vedantic Theme: Brahman

Application: Use the mantra with contemplation: while chanting, reflect that the Lord is both the ground of nature and the inner light of awareness.

Vishishtadvaita: Affirms Vishnu as both efficient and material cause (upādāna-nimitta), with the universe as His mode (prakāra) while He remains the pure-knowing Lord.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Vasudeva

Bhakti Type: Shanta

Vyuha Form: Vasudeva

Jagat Karana: Yes

Characters & Entities

• Vishnu (Vāsudeva)
• Hiraṇyagarbha
• Vyakta (manifest cosmos)

FAQs

What is the significance of Hiraṇyagarbha in the Vishnu Purana?

Here Hiraṇyagarbha is treated not as an independent creator but as a mode or form of Vāsudeva, showing that the creative principle arises from Vishnu’s sovereignty.

How does Sage Parāśara explain Pradhāna and Vyakta in this context?

By placing both Pradhāna (unmanifest nature) and Vyakta (manifest cosmos) within Vishnu’s forms, Parāśara frames creation as dependent on the Supreme Lord rather than an autonomous material process.

The theological importance of Lord Vishnu in this verse?

Vishnu (Vāsudeva) is affirmed as the supreme reality whose essence is pure consciousness and who encompasses spirit, matter, and the manifested universe—supporting a Vaishnava Vedāntic reading of cosmology.