Shloka 37

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

Devanagari script

ऊर्मिषट्कातिगं ब्रह्म ज्ञेयम् आत्मजयेन मे मतिर् एषा हृता येन धिक् तं कामं महाग्रहम्

Transliteration

ūrmiṣaṭkātigaṃ brahma jñeyam ātmajayena me matir eṣā hṛtā yena dhik taṃ kāmaṃ mahāgraham

Translation

Brahman is to be known as the Reality that transcends the six waves of worldly experience—yet even as I strive for self-mastery, my very understanding is stolen away. Fie upon that desire, that mighty seizer, which robs the mind of its highest aim.

Word by Word

• ऊर्मिषट्कातिगम्: transcending the six waves (of existence)
• ऊर्मिषट्कातिगम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ऊर्मि-षट्क-अतिग (प्रातिपदिक; ऊर्मि + षट्क + अतिग)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन (Neuter, Nom/Acc, Singular)

• ब्रह्म: Brahman
• ब्रह्म: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्रह्मन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन (Neuter, Nom/Acc, Singular)

• ज्ञेयम्: to be known
• ज्ञेयम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ज्ञेय (कृदन्त; √ज्ञा (धातु) + यत्)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विधिलिङ्गार्थक-भाव: 'to be known' (Neuter, Nom/Acc Sg; gerundive)

• आत्मजयेन: by self-conquest
• आत्मजयेन: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: आत्मजय (प्रातिपदिक; आत्मन् + जय)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन (Masculine, Instrumental, Singular)

• मे: my/to me
• मे: Sambandha (Possessor/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी/चतुर्थी-विभक्ति, एकवचन (Genitive/Dative, Singular)

• मतिः: understanding/intention
• मतिः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन (Feminine, Nominative, Singular)

• एषा: this
• एषा: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: एतद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन (Feminine, Nominative, Singular)

• हृता: taken away
• हृता: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: हृत (कृदन्त; √हृ (धातु) + क्त)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (Feminine, Nominative, Singular; past passive participle)

• येन: by whom
• येन: Karana (Instrument/Agent-instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तृतीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन (Instrumental, Singular)

• धिक्: fie! shame on!
• धिक्: Sambodhana/Prayojaka (Exclamation/प्रयोग)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: धिक् (अव्यय)
• Form: निन्दार्थक-अव्यय (indeclinable of censure)

• तम्: that (one)
• तम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन (Masculine, Accusative, Singular)

• कामम्: desire/lust
• कामम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: काम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन (Masculine, Accusative, Singular)

• महाग्रहम्: the great seizer (powerful captor)
• महाग्रहम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महाग्रह (प्रातिपदिक; महा + ग्रह)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन (Masculine, Accusative, Singular)

Speaker

A spiritual aspirant within the Parasara–Maitreya narrative frame (instructional voice presented by Sage Parasara)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Definition of Brahman as beyond the six ūrmis and the way kāma disrupts ātma-jaya (self-mastery)

Teaching: Philosophical

Quality: didactic with moral urgency

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Brahman is that which transcends the six ūrmis (hunger, thirst, grief, delusion, old age, death), yet kāma can still seize the mind unless self-conquest is firm.

Vedantic Theme: Brahman

Application: Name the ‘waves’ as they arise, practice restraint and recollection, and redirect attention to the Brahman-goal through japa, study, and regulated living.

Vishishtadvaita: The goal is Brahman (Nārāyaṇa) beyond worldly ūrmis; the jīva’s discipline is real but requires alignment to the Lord as the supreme end (parama-puruṣārtha).

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Para-Brahman

Bhakti Type: Shanta

Characters & Entities

• Brahman
• Kama (Desire)

FAQs

What is the significance of the ‘six waves’ (ūrmiṣaṭka) in the Vishnu Purana?

They symbolize the recurring pressures of embodied life—such as hunger, thirst, grief, delusion, old age, and death—that disturb the mind; liberation is framed as realizing the Supreme Reality beyond these fluctuations.

How does Sage Parasara explain self-mastery (ātmajaya) in this context?

Self-mastery is presented as the practical discipline required for realization: without conquering the mind’s impulses, even correct knowledge is ‘stolen’ by desire and cannot mature into direct insight.

What is the theological importance of the Supreme Reality here?

The verse emphasizes a transcendent Supreme Reality (Brahman) that stands beyond worldly instability; in Vaishnava Vedanta readings of the Vishnu Purana, this points to the highest truth to be realized through detachment and inner governance.