Shloka 147

Pracetās, Māriṣā, Dakṣa’s Re-manifestation, and the Brahma-parastava; Cyclic Creation and Genealogies

Devanagari script

विषानलोज्ज्वलमुखा यस्य दैत्यप्रचोदिताः नान्ताय सर्पपतयो बभूवुर् उरुतेजसः

Transliteration

viṣānalojjvalamukhā yasya daityapracoditāḥ nāntāya sarpapatayo babhūvur urutejasaḥ

Translation

Urged on by the Daityas, the mighty lords of serpents—whose mouths blazed with venom-fire—rose in countless hosts, radiant with vast and terrible splendor.

Word by Word

• विषानलोज्ज्वलमुखाः: having mouths blazing like poison-fire
• विषानलोज्ज्वलमुखाः: Visheshana (Adjectival qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: विष (प्रातिपदिक) + अनल (प्रातिपदिक) + उज्ज्वल (प्रातिपदिक) + मुख (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), बहुवचन; बहुव्रीहिः—“विषानलेन उज्ज्वलं मुखं येषाम्” (having mouths blazing with poison-fire)

• यस्य: of whom/whose
• यस्य: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/षष्ठी), एकवचन; सम्बन्ध (genitive)

• दैत्यप्रचोदिताः: urged on by demons
• दैत्यप्रचोदिताः: Visheshana (Adjectival qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: दैत्य (प्रातिपदिक) + प्रचोदित (कृदन्त; √चुद्/चोद् प्रेरणे, क्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), बहुवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त विशेषण—“दैत्यैः प्रचोदिताः” (impelled by demons)

• न: not
• न: Nishedha (Negation/निषेध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेध-अव्यय (negation particle)

• अन्ताय: for an end/termination
• अन्ताय: Sampradana (Dative/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अन्त (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी (4th/चतुर्थी), एकवचन; प्रयोजन/सम्प्रदान (for the end)

• सर्पपतयः: lords of serpents (serpent-kings)
• सर्पपतयः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सर्प (प्रातिपदिक) + पति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), बहुवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः—“सर्पाणां पतयः”

• बभूवुः: became/were
• बभूवुः: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √भू (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect/लिट्), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), बहुवचन; परस्मैपदम्

• उरुतेजसः: of immense radiance
• उरुतेजसः: Visheshana (Adjectival qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: उरु (प्रातिपदिक) + तेजस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), बहुवचन; कर्मधारयः—“उरुं तेजो येषाम्/उरुतेजसः” (of great splendor)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: How Prahlāda remained unharmed despite Hiraṇyakaśipu’s many attempts.

Teaching: Devotional

Quality: authoritative

Prahlada Narrative

Phase: Persecution

Bhakti Quality: Unshaken single-pointed devotion amid terror (avyabhicāriṇī bhakti).

Persecution: Serpents

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Hari

Bhakti Type: Shanta

Characters & Entities

• Daityas
• Sarpa-patayaḥ (Nāga kings/serpent-lords)

FAQs

What is the significance of the serpent-lords (Nāga kings) in this Vishnu Purana verse?

They represent immense subterranean/cosmic power—fiery and poisonous—mobilized in vast numbers, showing how formidable forces can be stirred within the universe’s larger order.

How does Sage Parāśara explain cosmic conflict in this context?

By depicting the Daityas inciting powerful beings, Parāśara frames conflict as an event within an ordered cosmos—terrifying in appearance, yet still contained within the overarching governance of reality.

What is the theological importance of Lord Vishnu here, even though he is not named directly?

The verse implies that all forces—divine, serpentine, or demonic—ultimately operate within a higher sovereignty; in Vaishnava reading, that supreme ordering principle is Vishnu as the ground of cosmic regulation.