Shloka 13

Devanagari script

अंशुकाश्यपतार्क्ष्यास् तु महापद्मस् तथोर्वशी चित्रसेनस् तथा विद्युन् मार्गशीर्षाधिकारिणः

Transliteration

aṃśukāśyapatārkṣyās tu mahāpadmas tathorvaśī citrasenas tathā vidyun mārgaśīrṣādhikāriṇaḥ

Translation

For the month of Mārgaśīrṣa, the appointed celestial authorities are: Aṃśukāśya and Patārkṣya; Mahāpadma; likewise the apsaras Urvaśī; the gandharva Citrasena; and Vidyun—these preside over the month’s ordained order.

Word by Word

• अंशुकः: Aṃśuka (name)
• अंशुकः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अंशुक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• आश्यपः: Āśyapa (name)
• आश्यपः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: आश्यप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• तार्क्ष्यः: Tārkṣya (name)
• तार्क्ष्यः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तार्क्ष्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• तु: and/indeed
• तु: Sambandha (Discourse particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: विरोध/विशेषबोधक-निपात (particle: ‘but/indeed’)

• महापद्मः: Mahāpadma (name)
• महापद्मः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महापद्म (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; समासः—कर्मधारय (महान्+पद्मः)

• तथा: likewise
• तथा: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय/प्रकारबोधक-अव्यय (adverb: ‘likewise’)

• उर्वशी: Urvaśī (apsaras)
• उर्वशी: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: उर्वशी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• चित्रसेनः: Citrasena (name)
• चित्रसेनः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: चित्रसेन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; समासः—कर्मधारय (चित्र+सेनः)

• तथा: likewise
• तथा: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय/प्रकारबोधक-अव्यय (adverb: ‘likewise’)

• विद्युत्: Vidyut (Lightning; name)
• विद्युत्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विद्युत् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• मार्गशीर्ष: in Mārgaśīrṣa (month)
• मार्गशीर्ष: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मार्गशीर्ष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन (अध्याहृतः: ‘मार्गशीर्षे’)

• अधिकारिणः: the presiding authorities
• अधिकारिणः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अधिकारिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (speaking to Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Mārgaśīrṣa-month governors in the Sun’s orb and their roles in the cosmic calendar.

Teaching: Cosmological

Quality: authoritative

Cosmological Context

Cosmic Hierarchy: Lokas

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: The regularity of months is sustained by distinct celestial authorities attached to the solar sphere.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Use the calendar as a spiritual framework—regularize sādhana by months and seasons to mirror cosmic steadiness.

Vishishtadvaita: Multiplicity of agents within a single cosmic order suggests unity-in-difference under the Supreme, aligning with qualified non-dualism.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Narayana

Bhakti Type: Shanta

Characters & Entities

• Mārgaśīrṣa (month)
• Aṃśukāśya
• Patārkṣya
• Mahāpadma
• Urvaśī
• Citrasena
• Vidyun
• Viṣṇu (implicit as the sustainer of cosmic order)

FAQs

What is the significance of Mārgaśīrṣa’s presiding authorities in the Vishnu Purana?

This verse lists the specific celestial regents assigned to Mārgaśīrṣa, showing that months are treated as structured cosmic jurisdictions within an ordered system of time.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the governance of time in this section?

Parāśara presents time as administratively arranged—months have named adhikārins (presiding beings), indicating a regulated cosmic order rather than randomness.

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

Even when Viṣṇu is not directly named, the catalog of monthly rulers implies a universe sustained by a supreme ordering principle—Viṣṇu as the ground of cosmic law (ṛta) and time’s harmony.