Shloka 54

Devanagari script

अक्षरं तत् परं ब्रह्म क्षरं सर्वम् इदं जगत् एकदेशस्थितस्येन्दोर् ज्योत्स्ना विस्तारिणी यथा परस्य ब्रह्मणः शक्तिस् तथैतद् अखिलं जगत्

Transliteration

akṣaraṃ tat paraṃ brahma kṣaraṃ sarvam idaṃ jagat ekadeśasthitasyendor jyotsnā vistāriṇī yathā parasya brahmaṇaḥ śaktis tathaitad akhilaṃ jagat

Translation

That Supreme Brahman is imperishable; this entire universe is perishable. As the moon, abiding in one place, spreads its radiance far and wide, so this whole cosmos is the expansive śakti of the Supreme Brahman.

Word by Word

• अक्षरम्: imperishable
• अक्षरम्: Karta (Predicate/कर्तृ-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अक्षर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; विशेषण

• तत्: that
• तत्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• परम्: supreme
• परम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; विशेषण

• ब्रह्म: Brahman
• ब्रह्म: Karta (Subject complement/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्रह्मन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन

• क्षरम्: perishable
• क्षरम्: Karta (Predicate/कर्तृ-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: क्षर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; विशेषण

• सर्वम्: all
• सर्वम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; विशेषण

• इदम्: this
• इदम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: इदम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• जगत्: world, universe
• जगत्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: जगत् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन

• एकदेशस्थितस्य: of (the moon) situated in one place/part
• एकदेशस्थितस्य: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठी-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: एक (प्रातिपदिक) + देश (प्रातिपदिक) + स्थित (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त; पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/षष्ठी), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (एकदेशे स्थितः)

• इन्दोः: of the moon
• इन्दोः: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठी-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: इन्दु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/षष्ठी), एकवचन

• ज्योत्स्ना: moonlight
• ज्योत्स्ना: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ज्योत्स्ना (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन

• विस्तारिणी: spreading, expansive
• विस्तारिणी: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: विस्तारिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; विशेषण (ज्योत्स्ना)

• यथा: as, just as
• यथा: Sambandha (Comparator/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यथा (अव्यय)
• Form: उपमानवाचक-अव्यय (comparative particle: as/like)

• परस्य: of the supreme
• परस्य: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठी-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/षष्ठी), एकवचन; विशेषण (ब्रह्मणः)

• ब्रह्मणः: of Brahman
• ब्रह्मणः: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठी-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्रह्मन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/षष्ठी), एकवचन

• शक्तिः: power, energy
• शक्तिः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शक्ति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन

• तथा: so, likewise
• तथा: Sambandha (Correlative/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: तुल्यताबोधक-अव्यय (correlative adverb: so/thus)

• एतत्: this
• एतत्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: एतद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• अखिलम्: entire, whole
• अखिलम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अखिल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; विशेषण (जगत्)

• जगत्: world, universe
• जगत्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: जगत् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (teaching Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Relation of the imperishable Supreme Brahman to the perishable universe as its expansive śakti (power)

Teaching: Philosophical

Quality: revealing

Cosmological Context

Cosmic Hierarchy: Brahmanda

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: The imperishable Supreme remains unchanged while the perishable universe is its all-pervading śakti, like moonlight spreading from the moon fixed in one place.

Vedantic Theme: Maya

Application: See the world as dependent energy of the Divine—engage it responsibly without mistaking it for the ultimate, cultivating both wonder and detachment.

Vishishtadvaita: The jagat is real as Brahman’s śakti/body (śarīra), perishable in form yet inseparable from the imperishable Lord who remains the inner ground and cause.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Para-Brahman

Bhakti Type: Shanta

Jagat Karana: Yes

Characters & Entities

• Brahman
• Jagat (Universe)

FAQs

What is the significance of the imperishable (akṣara) and perishable (kṣara) distinction in the Vishnu Purana?

This verse separates the Supreme Brahman as unchanging (akṣara) from the cosmos as changing and dissolvable (kṣara), framing the world as dependent on the Supreme rather than equal to it.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the relation between Brahman and the universe here?

He explains the universe as the śakti of the Supreme Brahman—like moonlight spreading from a moon fixed in one place—showing pervasive manifestation without implying that Brahman becomes limited or transformed like the world.

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

In the Vishnu Purana’s Vaishnava framework, the “Supreme Brahman” is understood as Vishnu: the imperishable Lord whose power manifests as the entire perishable universe, supporting Vishnu’s supremacy and cosmic sovereignty.