Shloka 47
प्रचेतसां तपः तथा विष्णु-स्तुतिः
The Pracetases’ Ocean Tapas and Hymn to Vishnu
ततस् तान् आह भगवान् व्रियताम् ईप्सितो वरः प्रसादसुमुखो ऽहं वो वरदः समुपस्थितः
tatas tān āha bhagavān vriyatām īpsito varaḥ prasādasumukho 'haṃ vo varadaḥ samupasthitaḥ
Then the Blessed Lord addressed them: “Choose the boon you desire. With a gracious countenance, I—your giver of boons—stand here before you.”
Bhagavan (the Lord, understood as Vishnu/Narayana in the Purana’s narrative frame)
Speaker: Parasara
Teaching: Devotional
Quality: compassionate
Concept: The Lord’s grace is personal and responsive: He stands present as 'varada' and invites the devotee’s chosen prayer to be articulated.
Vedantic Theme: Dharma
Application: Make prayer concrete and dharmic; articulate intentions clearly while remaining surrendered to what supports the common good.
Vishishtadvaita: God is not an impersonal absolute alone; He is a gracious Person who relates, speaks, and bestows boons while remaining Supreme.
Vishnu Form: Para-Brahman
Bhakti Type: Shanta
FAQs
It highlights prasāda—divine grace—where Vishnu, as sovereign protector, becomes directly present and authorizes the devotee’s desired request within cosmic order.
Parasara typically narrates that when devotion or austerity reaches fruition, Bhagavan personally appears and invites the petitioner to choose a boon—showing that grace is both responsive and purposeful.
Vishnu is portrayed as the Supreme Reality who is not distant: he is “varada” (boon-giver) and “prasādasumukha” (gracious), making transcendence compatible with compassionate accessibility.