Shloka 71

Devanagari script

यत्र यत्र ययौ देवी सा तदा भूतधारिणी तत्र तत्र तु सा वैन्यं ददृशे ऽभ्युद्यतायुधम्

Transliteration

yatra yatra yayau devī sā tadā bhūtadhāriṇī tatra tatra tu sā vainyaṃ dadṛśe 'bhyudyatāyudham

Translation

Wherever the Goddess, bearer of beings, went, there she beheld Vainya (King Pṛthu) with weapons raised, poised to act for the safeguarding of Dharma.

Word by Word

• yatra: where
• yatra: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yatra (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (स्थानवाचक/relative adverb)

• yatra: wherever
• yatra: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yatra (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (पुनरुक्ति—यत्र यत्र = wherever)

• yayau: went
• yayau: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: yā (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (परोक्षभूत/Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपदम्

• devī: the goddess (Earth)
• devī: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: devī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• sā: she
• sā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• tadā: then
• tadā: Adhikarana (Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tadā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (कालवाचक/temporal adverb)

• bhūtadhāriṇī: bearer of beings
• bhūtadhāriṇī: Karta (Apposition/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhūta + dhāriṇī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुष (षष्ठी) ‘भूतानां धारिणी’ (bearer of beings)

• tatra: there
• tatra: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (स्थानवाचक/correlative adverb)

• tatra: in every place
• tatra: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (पुनरुक्ति—तत्र तत्र = in each place)

• tu: but/indeed
• tu: Sambandha (Discourse particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (निपात/particle)

• sā: she
• sā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• vainyam: Vainya (Pṛthu)
• vainyam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vainya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषनाम (पृथु—वेनस्य अपत्यं)

• dadṛśe: saw
• dadṛśe: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: dṛś (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (परोक्षभूत/Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; आत्मनेपदम्

• abhyudyatāyudham: with weapon raised
• abhyudyatāyudham: Karma (Object-qualifier/कर्मविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: abhi-udyata + āyudha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; समासः—कर्मधारय ‘अभ्युद्यतम् आयुधं यस्य’/‘अभ्युद्यत-आयुध’ (with weapon raised)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Kingly sovereignty (rājya) is justified when it acts decisively to secure Dharma and the welfare of beings.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Use authority—personal or institutional—only as disciplined responsibility aimed at protecting the vulnerable and sustaining the common good.

Vishishtadvaita: World-order is preserved through divinely sanctioned governance; the ruler functions as an instrument of cosmic order rather than autonomous power.

Dynasty & Genealogy

Dharma Exemplar: Rājadharma (steadfast protection of subjects)

Key Kings: Pṛthu (Vainya)

Vaishnava Theology

Bhakti Type: dasya

Lakshmi Presence: Bhumi

Characters & Entities

• Devi (Goddess/Earth in embodied form)
• Vainya (King Pṛthu, son of Vena)

FAQs

What is the significance of the Goddess becoming bhūtadhāriṇī in the Vishnu Purana?

It highlights the Earth/Goddess taking an embodied, perceivable form so that the crisis of order can be addressed within the realm of action and governance.

How does Sage Parāśara frame the role of Vainya (Pṛthu) here?

As the archetypal righteous ruler—alert, armed, and resolute—whose authority is exercised to restore stability and protect dharma.

What is the theological importance of Lord Vishnu in this context?

Even when not named in the verse, the narrative assumes Vishnu as the Supreme ground of order, with kingship functioning as a dharmic instrument aligned to that higher sovereignty.