Shloka 15
वासुदेवस्वरूपनिरूपणं—सर्गक्रमश्च
Vāsudeva’s Nature and the Ordered Process of Creation
परस्य ब्रह्मणो रूपं पुरुषः प्रथमं द्विज व्यक्ताव्यक्ते तथैवान्ये रूपे कालस् तथापरम्
parasya brahmaṇo rūpaṃ puruṣaḥ prathamaṃ dvija vyaktāvyakte tathaivānye rūpe kālas tathāparam
O twice-born one, the first form of the Supreme Brahman is the Puruṣa, the Cosmic Person. He is likewise known as both the manifest and the unmanifest, and in yet another distinct form as Kāla, Time.
Sage Parāśara (teaching Maitreya)
Speaker: Parasara
Topic: Nature and forms (rūpa) of the Supreme Brahman/Vishnu as puruṣa, manifest-unmanifest, and kāla
Teaching: Cosmological
Quality: authoritative
Creation Stage: Primary
Concept: The Supreme Brahman is apprehended through multiple ontological designations—Puruṣa, manifest and unmanifest modes, and Time—without compromising His supremacy.
Vedantic Theme: Brahman
Application: Contemplate the divine as both transcendent and immanent—beyond categories yet expressible through them—to stabilize the mind in non-anxious reverence.
Vishishtadvaita: Vishnu is one reality who can be spoken of as both nirguṇa-transcendent and saguṇa-immanent, grounding diverse descriptions in a single personal Absolute.
Vishnu Form: Para-Brahman
Bhakti Type: Shanta
Jagat Karana: Yes
FAQs
This verse frames the Supreme as first apprehended as Puruṣa—the cosmic, ordering presence through whom the universe becomes intelligible and structured.
He presents them as two modes of the same Supreme reality: the unmanifest as the subtle ground of existence, and the manifest as the cosmos accessible to experience.
Kāla is treated as a divine aspect that regulates change—creation, continuity, and dissolution—underscoring the Supreme’s sovereignty over cosmic cycles.