Shloka 86

Devanagari script

क्षीरोदमध्ये भगवान् कूर्मरूपी स्वयं हरिः मन्दराद्रेर् अधिष्ठानं भ्रमतो ऽभून् महामुने

Transliteration

kṣīrodamadhye bhagavān kūrmarūpī svayaṃ hariḥ mandarādrer adhiṣṭhānaṃ bhramato 'bhūn mahāmune

Translation

O great sage, in the midst of the Ocean of Milk, the Blessed Lord Hari Himself assumed the form of the Tortoise, becoming the steadfast base of Mount Mandara as it whirled in the churning.

Word by Word

• क्षीर-उद-मध्ये: in the midst of the Ocean of Milk
• क्षीर-उद-मध्ये: अधिकरण (Location)
• Type: Noun
• Root: क्षीर (प्रातिपदिक) + उद (प्रातिपदिक) + मध्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, सप्तमी (7th/अधिकरण), एकवचनम्; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (क्षीरस्य उदः → क्षीरोदः; क्षीरोदस्य मध्ये)

• भगवान्: the Blessed Lord
• भगवान्: कर्ता (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भगवत् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचनम्

• कूर्म-रूपी: having the form of a tortoise
• कूर्म-रूपी: कर्ता-विशेषण (Subject qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: कूर्म (प्रातिपदिक) + रूपिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचनम्; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (कूर्मस्य रूपम् अस्य इति) विशेषणम् (भगवान्/हरिः)

• स्वयम्: himself
• स्वयम्: निपात (Emphasis)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: स्वयम् (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात/अव्यय (reflexive emphatic adverb)

• हरिः: Hari (Vishnu)
• हरिः: कर्ता (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: हरि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचनम्

• मन्दर-अद्रेः: of Mount Mandara
• मन्दर-अद्रेः: सम्बन्ध (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मन्दर (प्रातिपदिक) + अद्रि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, षष्ठी (6th/सम्बन्ध), एकवचनम्; कर्मधारयः (मन्दरः अद्रिः)

• अधिष्ठानम्: support/base
• अधिष्ठानम्: कर्म (Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अधिष्ठान (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचनम्

• भ्रमतः: of (the mountain) that was turning
• भ्रमतः: सम्बन्ध (Genitive qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: भ्रम् (धातु) → भ्रमन् (शतृ-कृदन्त)
• Form: वर्तमानकाले शतृ-प्रत्ययान्त, पुंलिङ्गे, षष्ठी (6th), एकवचनम्; विशेषणम् (मन्दराद्रेः)

• अभूत्: became/was
• अभूत्: क्रिया (Action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भू (धातु)
• Form: लङ् (Imperfect/past), प्रथमपुरुषः (3rd person), एकवचनम्; परस्मैपदम्

• महामुने: O great sage
• महामुने: सम्बोधन (Address)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महामुनि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, सम्बोधन (Vocative), एकवचनम्; कर्मधारयः (महान् मुनिः)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (speaking to Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: How Hari supported Mandara during the churning in the Milk Ocean

Teaching: Cosmological

Quality: revealing

Cosmological Context

Cosmic Hierarchy: Lokas

Avatara Context

Avatara: Kurma

Purpose: He descends as the Tortoise to bear Mount Mandara and make the churning of the Ocean of Milk possible.

Leela: Loka-rakshana

Dharma Restored: Restoration of divine strength and cosmic order through successful samudra-manthana

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: The Lord becomes the very ‘support’ (adhiṣṭhāna) of the world-process, enabling even divine aims to be fulfilled.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Cultivate reliance on the Lord as the inner support of effort—do one’s work steadily while remembering the sustaining ground beyond one’s strength.

Vishishtadvaita: Vishnu is both the transcendent Bhagavān and the immanent adhiṣṭhāna within cosmic operations, consistent with qualified non-dual dependence.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Hari

Characters & Entities

• Vishnu (Hari)
• Kurma (Tortoise Avatar)
• Mandara Mountain
• Kshiroda (Ocean of Milk)

FAQs

What is the significance of the Kūrma (tortoise) form in the Vishnu Purana?

This verse presents Kūrma as Vishnu’s sustaining power: He becomes the stable foundation so the cosmic churning can proceed without collapse, showing preservation as a divine function.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the stability of the churning process (Samudra Manthana)?

Parāśara explains that when Mount Mandara rotated violently, Hari Himself took the Kūrma form beneath it, serving as the base (adhiṣṭhāna) that made the churning possible.

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

Vishnu is depicted as the Supreme Support—personally entering the cosmic event to uphold order—emphasizing that all transformative processes rest upon His sustaining sovereignty.