Shloka 29

मानससृष्टिः, रुद्रोत्पत्तिः, मन्वादिवंशः, प्रलयचतुष्टयम्

Devanagari script

माया च वेदना चैव मिथुनं त्व् इदम् एतयोः तयोर् जज्ञे ऽथ वै माया मृत्युं भूतापहारिणम्

Transliteration

māyā ca vedanā caiva mithunaṃ tv idam etayoḥ tayor jajñe 'tha vai māyā mṛtyuṃ bhūtāpahāriṇam

Translation

Māyā and Vedanā became a pair; and from their union, Māyā indeed brought forth Mṛtyu—Death, the taker-away of embodied beings.

Word by Word

• māyā: Illusion/Maya
• māyā: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: māyā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular

• ca: And
• ca: None
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Conjunction

• vedanā: Pain/Agony
• vedanā: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vedanā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular

• ca: And
• ca: None
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Conjunction

• eva: Indeed
• eva: None
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: Particle

• mithunam: Pair/Couple
• mithunam: Visheshana (Predicate)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mithuna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular

• tu: But
• tu: None
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: Conjunction

• idam: This
• idam: Visheshana (Demonstrative)
• Type: Noun
• Root: idam (सर्वनाम)
• Form: Neuter, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular

• etayoḥ: Of these two
• etayoḥ: Sambandha (Relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: etad (सर्वनाम)
• Form: Dual, Genitive (6th/षष्ठी)

• tayoḥ: From those two
• tayoḥ: Apadana (Source)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम)
• Form: Dual, Ablative (5th/पञ्चमी)

• jajñe: Produced/Bore
• jajñe: Kriya (Action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: jan (धातु)
• Form: Lit Lakara (Perfect), Atmanepada, Prathama Purusha, Singular

• atha: Then
• atha: None
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atha (अव्यय)
• Form: Adverb

• vai: Indeed
• vai: None
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vai (अव्यय)
• Form: Particle

• māyā: Maya
• māyā: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: māyā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular

• mṛtyum: Death
• mṛtyum: Karma (Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mṛtyu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular

• bhūtāpahāriṇam: Destroyer of beings
• bhūtāpahāriṇam: Visheshana (Adjective to mṛtyum)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: bhūta-apahārin (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: How suffering-structures (māyā, vedanā) generate death within embodied existence

Teaching: Cosmological

Quality: revealing

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Māyā conjoined with Vedanā yields Mṛtyu, indicating that embodied life under ignorance is structurally bound to death.

Vedantic Theme: Maya

Application: Contemplate mortality to loosen attachment; pursue discernment (viveka) and devotion to the Lord to transcend māyā’s binding power.

Vishishtadvaita: Māyā is not an absolute rival to Brahman; it is a dependent power within the Lord’s governance, while souls remain real and accountable.

Characters & Entities

• Māyā
• Vedanā
• Mṛtyu (Death)

FAQs

What is the significance of Māyā and Vedanā forming a pair in the Vishnu Purana?

It frames death as emerging from the intertwined forces of delusion/limitation (māyā) and embodied experience (vedanā), situating mortality within the designed order of creation.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the origin of Death (Mṛtyu) here?

Parāśara presents Mṛtyu as a generated principle within sarga—born from Māyā’s conjunction with Vedanā—indicating that death is not ultimate, but a created function affecting beings.

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

Even when not named in the verse, the Vishnu Purana’s framework treats Māyā and all emergent principles (including Mṛtyu) as operating under Vishnu’s supreme sovereignty, making death subordinate to the Supreme Reality.