Shloka 18

सूर्यरथः, सप्तगणाः, मासाधिकारिणः

The Sun’s Chariot and the Sevenfold Monthly Governors

Devanagari script

विष्णुर् अश्वतरो रम्भा सूर्यवर्चाश् च सत्यजित् विश्वामित्रस् तथा रक्षो यज्ञोपेतो महामुने

Transliteration

viṣṇur aśvataro rambhā sūryavarcāś ca satyajit viśvāmitras tathā rakṣo yajñopeto mahāmune

Translation

O great sage, there were also Viṣṇu, Aśvatara, Rambhā, Sūryavarcā, and Satyajit; likewise Viśvāmitra, the rākṣasa named Rakṣa, and Yajñopeta—thus are they remembered in the ordered account.

Word by Word

• विष्णुः: Viṣṇu (name)
• विष्णुः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विष्णु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• अश्वतरः: Aśvatara (name)
• अश्वतरः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अश्वतर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

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

• सूर्यवर्चाः: Sūryavarcā (name; ‘sun-splendour’)
• सूर्यवर्चाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सूर्य + वर्चस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; वर्चस्-शब्द (ending -āḥ in nom.sg.)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक अव्यय (and)

• सत्यजित्: Satyajit (name; ‘truth-conqueror’)
• सत्यजित्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सत्य + जित् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• विश्वामित्रः: Viśvāmitra (name)
• विश्वामित्रः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विश्व + मित्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• तथा: likewise/also
• तथा: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: प्रकारवाचक अव्यय (thus/also)

• रक्षः: a Rākṣasa (demon)
• रक्षः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: रक्षस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; रक्षस्-शब्द (nom.sg. रक्षः)

• यज्ञोपेतः: Yajñopeta (name; ‘associated with sacrifice’)
• यज्ञोपेतः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: यज्ञ + उपेत (प्रातिपदिक; कृदन्ताधारित)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; उपेत (क्त/PPP from √इ with upa-), ‘endowed with/attending sacrifice’

• महामुने: O great sage
• महामुने: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महामुनि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (Vocative), एकवचन; महा + मुनि

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (narrating) to Maitreya

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Names of the next set of solar attendants for the subsequent month-group

Teaching: Cosmological

Quality: cataloguing

Cosmological Context

Cosmic Hierarchy: Lokas (worlds)

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Hari

Characters & Entities

• Viṣṇu
• Aśvatara
• Rambhā
• Sūryavarcā
• Satyajit
• Viśvāmitra
• Rākṣasa (Rakṣa)
• Yajñopeta
• Maitreya

FAQs

What is the significance of listing names like Viṣṇu, Viśvāmitra, and others in this Manvantara passage of the Vishnu Purana?

The verse functions as a canonical register: it preserves the recognized participants and notable beings associated with a specific Manvantara, reinforcing the Purana’s theme of cosmic order expressed through recurring cycles and named lineages.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the Manvantara framework through such verses?

Parāśara teaches Maitreya by enumerating the constituents of each cycle—figures, sages, and beings—so the listener can map dharma and cosmic administration as structured, repeatable epochs rather than isolated myths.

What is the theological importance of the name “Viṣṇu” appearing in a list of beings here?

Even when presented as a name within an enumerative list, “Viṣṇu” evokes the Purana’s central claim: the Supreme Vishnu is the sustaining principle behind every Manvantara, within which various agents and lineages operate.