Shloka 63

Cosmic Appointments, Viṣṇu’s Vibhūtis, Fourfold Operation, and the Symbolism of Ornaments and Weapons

Devanagari script

क्षराक्षरमयो विष्णुर् बिभर्त्य् अखिलम् ईश्वरः पुरुषाव्याकृतमयं भूषणास्त्रस्वरूपवत्

Transliteration

kṣarākṣaramayo viṣṇur bibharty akhilam īśvaraḥ puruṣāvyākṛtamayaṃ bhūṣaṇāstrasvarūpavat

Translation

Vishnu—the Lord—whose being is both perishable and imperishable, sustains the entire universe. He bears within Himself the Purusha and the Unmanifest (Avyākṛta), as though they were His very ornaments and weapons.

Word by Word

• क्षराक्षरमयः: consisting of the perishable and imperishable
• क्षराक्षरमयः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: क्षर (प्रातिपदिक) + अक्षर (प्रातिपदिक) + मय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; समासः—षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (क्षराक्षरयोः मयः = made of the perishable and imperishable)

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

• बिभर्ति: bears, supports
• बिभर्ति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √भृ (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

• अखिलम्: entire, all
• अखिलम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अखिल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; कर्मविशेषणम्

• ईश्वरः: the Lord
• ईश्वरः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ईश्वर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; विष्णोः विशेषण-रूपेण

• पुरुषाव्याकृतमयम्: made of Puruṣa and the unmanifest (avyākṛta)
• पुरुषाव्याकृतमयम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पुरुष (प्रातिपदिक) + अव्याकृत (प्रातिपदिक) + मय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (पुरुषेण अव्याकृतेन च मयम् = made of Puruṣa and the unmanifest)

• भूषणास्त्रस्वरूपवत्: as (if) in the form of ornaments and weapons
• भूषणास्त्रस्वरूपवत्: Kriya-visheshaṇa (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: भूषण (प्रातिपदिक) + अस्त्र (प्रातिपदिक) + स्वरूप (प्रातिपदिक) + वत् (प्रत्यय/तद्धित)
• Form: अव्यय-प्राय (वत्-प्रत्ययान्त), उपमानवाचक; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (भूषणानि च अस्त्राणि च तेषां स्वरूपम्)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (teaching Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: How Viṣṇu, being both kṣara and akṣara, sustains the universe with Purusha and Avyākṛta as His bhūṣaṇa-astra forms

Teaching: Cosmological

Quality: authoritative

Cosmological Context

Creation Stage: Primary

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Viṣṇu as Īśvara is simultaneously the imperishable and perishable principle and bears within Himself both Purusha and the unmanifest Prakṛti as expressions of His lordship.

Vedantic Theme: Brahman

Application: Contemplate the world as pervaded and governed by the Divine, cultivating steadiness and reverence in daily perception.

Vishishtadvaita: Affirms the Supreme as both transcendent (nirguṇa-like) and immanent (as kṣara/akṣara), with cosmos as His mode (prakāra) under His sovereignty.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Para-Brahman

Bhakti Type: Shanta

Antaryamin: Yes

Jagat Karana: Yes

Characters & Entities

• Vishnu
• Avyakrita

FAQs

What is the significance of kṣara and akṣara in the Vishnu Purana?

This verse presents Vishnu as encompassing both the changing, manifest universe (kṣara) and the unchanging, imperishable principle (akṣara), asserting Him as the total ground of reality.

How does Sage Parāśara explain Purusha and Avyākṛta here?

Parāśara describes both the conscious principle (Purusha) and the unmanifest primordial state (Avyākṛta) as contained and borne by Vishnu—dependent on Him rather than independent absolutes.

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

Vishnu is affirmed as Īśvara who sustains all existence, integrating transcendence and immanence—central to Vaishnava Vedanta where the Supreme is the support of both manifest and unmanifest reality.