Shloka 5

प्रह्लादस्य विष्णुमयता, विष्णोः दर्शनं, वरदानं, तथा चरितश्रवण-फलम्

Devanagari script

भ्रान्तग्राहगणः सोर्मिर् ययौ क्षोभं महार्णवः चचाल च मही सर्वा सशैलवनकानना

Transliteration

bhrāntagrāhagaṇaḥ sormir yayau kṣobhaṃ mahārṇavaḥ cacāla ca mahī sarvā saśailavanakānanā

Translation

The great ocean heaved with surging waves, its hosts of crocodiles thrown into bewildered motion, and rose in violent agitation; and the whole earth trembled as well—mountains, forests, and every wilderness quivering in that universal upheaval.

Word by Word

• भ्रान्तग्राहगणः: the group of bewildered sea-creatures
• भ्रान्तग्राहगणः: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भ्रान्त+ग्राह+गण (प्रातिपदिक; भ्रान्तग्राहगण)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा विभक्ति; एकवचन (nom. sg.); तत्पुरुषः—भ्रान्ताः ग्राहाः (confused sea-monsters/crocodiles) तेषां गणः (group)

• सः: that/he
• सः: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम; पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा विभक्ति; एकवचन (pronoun, nom. sg.)

• ऊर्मिः: with waves / wave
• ऊर्मिः: Karta (Subject qualifier)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ऊर्मि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा विभक्ति; एकवचन (nom. sg.); (समुद्रस्य विशेषणरूपेण—“with waves”)

• ययौ: went/entered
• ययौ: Kriya (Main verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: या (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect); प्रथमपुरुष; एकवचन; परस्मैपद (3rd sg. perfect, active)

• क्षोभम्: agitation
• क्षोभम्: Karma (Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: क्षोभ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; द्वितीया विभक्ति; एकवचन (acc. sg.)

• महार्णवः: the great ocean
• महार्णवः: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महा+अर्णव (प्रातिपदिक; महार्णव)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा विभक्ति; एकवचन (nom. sg.); कर्मधारयः—महान् अर्णवः (great ocean)

• चचाल: shook/moved
• चचाल: Kriya (Main verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: चल् (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect); प्रथमपुरुष; एकवचन; परस्मैपद (3rd sg. perfect, active)

• च: and
• च: Samuccaya (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयबोधक निपात (conjunction)

• मही: the earth
• मही: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मही (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; प्रथमा विभक्ति; एकवचन (fem. nom. sg.)

• सर्वा: entire
• सर्वा: Visheshana (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; प्रथमा विभक्ति; एकवचन (fem. nom. sg.); विशेषणम् (qualifies मही)

• सशैलवनकानना: with its mountains, forests, and groves
• सशैलवनकानना: Visheshana (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: स+शैल+वन+कानन (प्रातिपदिक; सशैलवनकानन)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; प्रथमा विभक्ति; एकवचन (fem. nom. sg.); तत्पुरुषः (सह-समास/उपपद-तत्पुरुष): शैलैः वनैः काननैः सह (together with mountains, forests, and groves)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Cosmic disturbance accompanying the conflict around Prahlāda

Teaching: Historical

Quality: majestic

Cosmological Context

Cosmic Hierarchy: Lokas

Prahlada Narrative

Phase: Divine-protection

Bhakti Quality: Devotion so potent it shakes hostile arrangements and signals divine intervention

Characters & Entities

• Parāśara
• Maitreya
• Mahārṇava (the great ocean)
• Earth (Mahī)
• Grāha (crocodiles/sea-creatures)

FAQs

What is the significance of the ocean’s agitation in the Vishnu Purana?

It signals a cosmic-scale disturbance where even the primordial waters and their creatures lose stability, illustrating how the universe’s order can be shaken during great transitions in creation and dissolution cycles.

How does Sage Parāśara explain cosmic upheaval to Maitreya here?

Parāśara uses vivid natural imagery—roaring waves, confused sea-creatures, and a trembling earth—to convey that the disruption is universal, not local, and affects all layers of the world.

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

Even when nature appears chaotic, the Purāṇic worldview frames such upheavals within Vishnu’s overarching sovereignty—cosmic order and its periodic disturbances ultimately remain within the Supreme Reality’s governance.