Shloka 19

दुर्वासाशापः, क्षीरसागरमन्थनम्, श्रीः (लक्ष्मी) उद्भवः तथा श्रीस्तुतिः

Devanagari script

प्रसाद्यमानः स तदा प्रणिपातपुरःसरम् प्रत्युवाच सहस्राक्षं दुर्वासा मुनिसत्तमः

Transliteration

prasādyamānaḥ sa tadā praṇipātapuraḥsaram pratyuvāca sahasrākṣaṃ durvāsā munisattamaḥ

Translation

Then, as he was being propitiated with reverent prostrations offered beforehand, the foremost of sages—Durvāsā—replied to Sahasrākṣa (Indra).

Word by Word

• प्रसाद्यमानः: being propitiated/being appeased
• प्रसाद्यमानः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्र-√सद् (धातु) + णिच् (causative) + शानच् (present passive participle)
• Form: वर्तमानकर्मणि कृदन्त (present passive participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular)

• सः: he
• सः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular)

• तदा: then
• तदा: Kala (Time/काल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तदा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; कालवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (temporal adverb)

• प्रणिपात-पुरःसरम्: preceded by prostration
• प्रणिपात-पुरःसरम्: Sambandha (Manner/प्रकार)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: प्रणिपात (प्रातिपदिक) + पुरःसर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययीभाव-समास; अव्ययवत् प्रयोग (adverbial): ‘प्रणिपातः पुरः यस्य’ = ‘with prostration in front/preceded by obeisance’

• प्रत्युवाच: replied
• प्रत्युवाच: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्रति-√वच् (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन (Singular)

• सहस्राक्षम्: to Sahasrākṣa (Indra)
• सहस्राक्षम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सहस्राक्ष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन (Singular)

• दुर्वासाः: Durvāsas
• दुर्वासाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दुर्वासस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular)

• मुनि-सत्तमः: the best of sages
• मुनि-सत्तमः: Karta (Apposition/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मुनि (प्रातिपदिक) + सत्तम (सत् + तमप्)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: ‘मुनीनां सत्तमः’), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular); उपाधि/विशेष्य (epithet)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (narrator) describing Durvāsā’s response to Indra within the Parāśara–Maitreya dialogue frame

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Durvāsā’s response to Indra’s prostration and propitiation

Teaching: Historical

Quality: revealing

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Atonement begins with praṇipāta (humble surrender) and attentive reception of corrective instruction.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Practice accountability: acknowledge harm, bow to truth, and listen before speaking.

Vishishtadvaita: The guru-saint as conduit of dharmic correction; humility restores eligibility for divine favor (anugraha).

Vaishnava Theology

Bhakti Type: Dasya

Characters & Entities

• Durvāsā
• Indra (Sahasrākṣa)

FAQs

What is the significance of Indra (Sahasrākṣa) offering prostrations in the Vishnu Purana?

This verse highlights that even the king of the Devas must submit to dharma and ascetic authority; humility becomes the proper means to avert or soften the force of a sage’s displeasure.

How does Sage Parāśara frame the power of sages like Durvāsā in this context?

Parāśara presents the sage’s response as triggered by formal acts of appeasement, showing that tapas-backed speech carries decisive moral weight within the cosmic order Parāśara teaches Maitreya.

What is the theological importance of Lord Vishnu in this episode’s larger context?

While Vishnu is not named in this verse, the narrative logic of the Vishnu Purana places Devas and sages within a higher sovereignty—Vishnu as the Supreme Reality who ultimately stabilizes order when pride and imbalance arise.