Shloka 61

वासुदेवस्वरूपनिरूपणं—सर्गक्रमश्च

Vāsudeva’s Nature and the Ordered Process of Creation

Devanagari script

सृष्टं च पात्य् अनुयुगं यावत् कल्पविकल्पना सत्त्वभृद् भगवान् विष्णुर् अप्रमेयपराक्रमः

Transliteration

sṛṣṭaṃ ca pāty anuyugaṃ yāvat kalpavikalpanā sattvabhṛd bhagavān viṣṇur aprameyaparākramaḥ

Translation

Having brought forth the created order, the Blessed Lord Vishnu—upholding all beings, of immeasurable might—preserves it age after age for as long as the cosmic arrangement of a kalpa endures.

Word by Word

• सृष्टम्: the created (world); what has been created
• सृष्टम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Verb
• Root: सृज् (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (past passive participle), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया/प्रथमा एकवचन (context: कर्मरूपेण)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयार्थक निपात (conjunction)

• पाति: protects; sustains
• पाति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: पा (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• अनुयुगम्: age after age; in every yuga
• अनुयुगम्: Kala (Time/काल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अनु (अव्यय) + युग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययीभावसमास; अव्ययवत् प्रयोग (adverbial), अर्थ: युगं युगं प्रति

• यावत्: as long as; until
• यावत्: Kala (Time/काल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यावत् (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधारण/पर्यन्तवाचक (until/as long as)

• कल्पविकल्पना: the arrangement/sequence of the kalpa
• कल्पविकल्पना: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कल्प (प्रातिपदिक) + विकल्पना (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: कल्पस्य विकल्पना (the alternation/ordering of a kalpa)

• सत्त्वभृत्: the sustainer of sattva (one who bears sattva)
• सत्त्वभृत्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सत्त्व (प्रातिपदिक) + भृत् (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक from √भृ)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन; उपपद-तत्पुरुष: सत्त्वं बिभर्ति इति

• भगवान्: the Blessed Lord
• भगवान्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भगवत् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन

• विष्णुः: Vishnu
• विष्णुः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विष्णु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन

• अप्रमेयपराक्रमः: of immeasurable prowess
• अप्रमेयपराक्रमः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अप्रमेय (प्रातिपदिक) + पराक्रम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन; कर्मधारय: अप्रमेयः पराक्रमः यस्य/यः

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (teaching Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: How Vishnu preserves the created order through time within a kalpa

Teaching: Cosmological

Quality: authoritative

Cosmological Context

Creation Stage: Kalpa

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Vishnu sustains the manifested cosmos through successive ages for the full duration of a kalpa, with immeasurable power.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Cultivate trust (śraddhā) in the sustaining order of reality and practice steadiness in dharma across changing times.

Vishishtadvaita: The Lord’s preservation is continuous governance of the world as His dependent body (śeṣa-śeṣi relation).

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Para-Brahman

Bhakti Type: Shanta

Vyuha Form: Vasudeva

Jagat Karana: Yes

Characters & Entities

• Vishnu

FAQs

What is the significance of the yuga-by-yuga preservation mentioned in this verse in the Vishnu Purana?

It asserts that preservation (sthiti) is an ongoing divine function: Vishnu sustains the world through every yuga, maintaining order until the kalpa’s cycle reaches its completion.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the kalpa cycle here?

Parāśara frames time as a structured cosmic cycle (kalpa-vikalpanā), within which Vishnu’s sustaining power operates continuously, linking cosmology to divine governance.

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

Vishnu is presented as Bhagavān with immeasurable sovereignty—both the supporter of all beings (sattvabhṛt) and the ultimate ground of cosmic stability across cycles of time.