Shloka 7

प्रह्लादचरितम् (हिरण्यकशिपोः स्वर्गापहरणं, प्रह्लादस्य विष्णुभक्तिः, उपदेशः)

Devanagari script

पानासक्तं महात्मानं हिरण्यकशिपुं तदा उपासां चक्रिरे सर्वे सिद्धगन्धर्वपन्नगाः

Transliteration

pānāsaktaṃ mahātmānaṃ hiraṇyakaśipuṃ tadā upāsāṃ cakrire sarve siddhagandharvapannagāḥ

Translation

Then, when the great-souled Hiraṇyakaśipu became addicted to drink, all the Siddhas, Gandharvas, and serpent-beings began to offer him homage and worship.

Word by Word

• पानासक्तम्: addicted to drinking
• पानासक्तम्: Karma (कर्म/Object qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पान + आसक्त (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; तत्पुरुष (पाने आसक्तः) विशेषण (of महात्मानम्/हिरण्यकशिपुम्)

• महात्मानम्: the great-souled one
• महात्मानम्: Karma (कर्म/Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महात्मन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; कर्मधारय (महान् आत्मा यस्य)

• हिरण्यकशिपुम्: Hiraṇyakaśipu
• हिरण्यकशिपुम्: Karma (कर्म/Object; apposition to महात्मानम्)
• Type: Noun
• Root: हिरण्यकशिपु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; नाम, तत्पुरुष (हिरण्यं कशिपुः यस्य/हिरण्यकशिपुः)

• तदा: then
• तदा: Kriya-visheṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तदा (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्यय (temporal adverb)

• उपासाम्: attendance, service
• उपासाम्: Karma (कर्म/Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: उपासा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• चक्रिरे: they performed
• चक्रिरे: Kriya (क्रिया/Predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: कृ (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), बहुवचन, आत्मनेपदी

• सर्वे: all
• सर्वे: Karta (कर्ता/Subject qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; विशेषण (of सिद्धगन्धर्वपन्नगाः)

• सिद्धगन्धर्वपन्नगाः: Siddhas, Gandharvas, and serpents
• सिद्धगन्धर्वपन्नगाः: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सिद्ध + गन्धर्व + पन्नग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; इतरेतर-द्वन्द्व (सिद्धाश्च गन्धर्वाश्च पन्नगाश्च)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: How various classes of beings reacted to Hiraṇyakaśipu’s dominance

Teaching: Historical

Quality: authoritative

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Fear can counterfeit devotion (upāsanā), but coerced homage is not dharma and cannot endure.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Examine motives behind praise or allegiance; choose integrity over expedient conformity.

Vishishtadvaita: True worship is directed to the supreme worthy object (Viṣṇu); misdirected ‘upāsanā’ under fear is a distortion of bhakti.

Characters & Entities

• Hiraṇyakaśipu
• Siddhas
• Gandharvas
• Pannagas (Nāgas)

FAQs

What is the significance of celestial beings worshipping Hiraṇyakaśipu in the Vishnu Purana?

It signals the peak of asuric political power—where even semi-divine orders (Siddhas, Gandharvas, Nāgas) are pressured into submission—setting the stage for dharma’s eventual restoration through Vishnu.

How does Sage Parāśara frame the nature of Hiraṇyakaśipu’s power here?

Parāśara presents it as an intoxication—an attachment that swells into pride—implying a sovereignty that is forceful yet unstable when measured against higher cosmic law.

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

Even when worldly and celestial hierarchies bend to an asura, Vishnu remains the transcendent ground of order; the verse foreshadows that supremacy over beings is not supremacy over Reality itself.