Shloka 78

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

Devanagari script

ततः प्रभृति मैत्रेय प्रजा मैथुनसंभवाः संकल्पाद् दर्शनात् स्पर्शात् पूर्वेषाम् अभवन् प्रजाः तपोविशैषैर् इद्धानां तदात्यन्ततपस्विनाम्

Transliteration

tataḥ prabhṛti maitreya prajā maithunasaṃbhavāḥ saṃkalpād darśanāt sparśāt pūrveṣām abhavan prajāḥ tapoviśaiṣair iddhānāṃ tadātyantatapasvinām

Translation

From that point onward, O Maitreya, beings came to be through sexual union; whereas among the earlier orders of creation, offspring arose through mere intention, through sight, and through touch—those primeval progenitors being kindled by extraordinary austerities, supremely ascetic in nature.

Word by Word

ततःthereafter

प्रभृतिfrom then on

मैत्रेयO Maitreya

प्रजाःcreatures/offspring

मैथुनसंभवाःborn of sexual union

संकल्पात्from (mere) intention

दर्शनात्from sight

स्पर्शात्from touch

पूर्वेषाम्of the earlier ones (ancients)

अभवन्came to be

प्रजाःcreatures

तपोविशेषैःby special austerities

इद्धानाम्of those intensified

तदाthen

अत्यन्ततपस्विनाम्of the extremely ascetic ones

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (speaking to Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Modes of procreation in early creation and the shift from mind-born to sexual generation.

Teaching: Cosmological

Quality: authoritative

Cosmological Context

Creation Stage: Secondary

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Earlier progenitors, empowered by tapas, could generate offspring through will, sight, or touch; later beings arise through maithuna, marking a densification of embodiment and causality in creation.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Treat self-discipline (tapas) as a real transformative force; channel desire ethically, recognizing it as a later-stage power requiring regulation.

Vishishtadvaita: Embodiment and its means (tapas, desire, procreation) are meaningful real processes within the Lord’s ordered creation, not mere illusion—supporting a qualified, value-laden world.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Para-Brahman

Characters & Entities

Maitreya

Prajā (created beings)

Ancient progenitors (pūrve)

FAQs

What is the significance of different modes of birth (saṃkalpa, sight, touch, and union) in the Vishnu Purana?

This verse marks a cosmological shift: earlier beings, empowered by intense tapas, could generate offspring through subtle means (will, sight, touch), but later creation becomes embodied and proceeds through sexual reproduction.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the role of tapas in creation?

Parāśara presents tapas as a real potency that ‘kindles’ the ancient progenitors, enabling extraordinary, non-physical modes of generation—showing that ascetic power precedes and shapes material processes.

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

Within Vishnu Purana’s Sarga framework, these changing modes of birth unfold under Vishnu’s sovereign cosmic order: the Supreme Reality governs how life manifests, from subtle origins to embodied continuity.