Shloka 23

दुर्वासाशापः, क्षीरसागरमन्थनम्, श्रीः (लक्ष्मी) उद्भवः तथा श्रीस्तुतिः

Devanagari script

ज्वलज्जटाकलापस्य भृकुटीकुटिलं मुखम् निरीक्ष्य कस् त्रिभुवने मम यो न गतो भयम्

Transliteration

jvalajjaṭākalāpasya bhṛkuṭīkuṭilaṃ mukham nirīkṣya kas tribhuvane mama yo na gato bhayam

Translation

Beholding that face—its brow knotted in a fierce frown, and its matted locks blazing like fire—who in all the three worlds could see it and not be seized by fear?

Word by Word

• jvalat: blazing
• jvalat: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: √jval (धातु)
• Form: वर्तमान-कृदन्त; शतृ-प्रत्यय (present active participle); पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग; षष्ठी; एकवचन-समासाङ्ग (as compound member)

• jaṭā-kalāpasya: of the mass of matted locks
• jaṭā-kalāpasya: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jaṭā (प्रातिपदिक) + kalāpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; षष्ठी; एकवचन (Masculine genitive singular); समास (locks-cluster)

• bhṛkuṭī-kuṭilam: crooked with a frown
• bhṛkuṭī-kuṭilam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: bhṛkuṭī (प्रातिपदिक) + kuṭila (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया; एकवचन (Neuter accusative singular); विशेषण (qualifying mukha)

• mukham: face
• mukham: Karman (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mukha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया; एकवचन (Neuter accusative singular)

• nirīkṣya: having looked at
• nirīkṣya: Purvakala (Prior action/पूर्वकाल)
• Type: Verb
• Root: nir-√īkṣ (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वा-प्रत्ययान्त अव्ययभाव (gerund/absolutive)

• kaḥ: who
• kaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kim (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम; पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; एकवचन (Interrogative pronoun, masc nom sg)

• tribhuvane: in the three worlds
• tribhuvane: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tri (प्रातिपदिक) + bhuvana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; सप्तमी; एकवचन (Neuter locative singular); द्विगु-समास (three worlds)

• mama: of me/my
• mama: Sambandha (Possessor/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम; षष्ठी; एकवचन (Genitive singular)

• yaḥ: who (that)
• yaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम; पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; एकवचन (Relative pronoun, masc nom sg)

• na: not
• na: Sambandha (Discourse particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक-अव्यय (negative particle)

• gataḥ: has gone/has come to
• gataḥ: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया-विशेष)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √gam (धातu)
• Form: कृदन्त; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (past active participle); पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; एकवचन (Masc nom sg)

• bhayam: fear
• bhayam: Karman (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhaya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया; एकवचन (Neuter accusative singular)

Speaker

Implied first-person witness within Parāśara’s narration to Maitreya (describing the terrifying aspect of Rudra/Śiva as part of cosmic governance under Vishnu’s sovereignty)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: The terrifying appearance and tapas-fueled wrath of Durvāsas as a force feared across the three worlds

Teaching: Ethical

Quality: vivid

Cosmological Context

Cosmic Hierarchy: Lokas

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Tapas manifests as palpable spiritual potency; fear arises when power is untempered by kṣamā and when one has incurred offense.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Channel discipline into steadiness and compassion; avoid actions that provoke avoidable conflict with those of integrity and austerity.

Vishishtadvaita: Power (śakti) is not autonomous; it operates within the Lord’s order—yet its immediate expression through tapas commands reverence and restraint.

Characters & Entities

• Rudra (Shiva)
• Three worlds (Tribhuvana)

FAQs

What is the significance of fear (bhaya) when witnessing Rudra’s form in the Vishnu Purana?

The verse uses fear as a theological marker of overwhelming divine potency—Rudra’s terrifying aspect represents cosmic dissolution/discipline, reminding beings of the vast, ordered power operating within the universe.

How does Sage Parāśara explain divine forms like Rudra’s within the Vishnu Purana’s worldview?

Parāśara presents such forms as manifestations of cosmic functions; even awe-inspiring or fearsome deities operate within the larger framework of universal order ultimately grounded in Vishnu’s supreme reality.

What is the theological importance of Vishnu in this context?

Even when describing Rudra’s terrifying theophany, the Purana’s Vaishnava lens frames cosmic powers as dependent principles—Vishnu remains the highest ground of being and the final source of order and sovereignty.