Shloka 2
आदित्यकर्म, त्रयीमयी वैष्णवी शक्तिः, सवितुरन्तर्यामी
The Sun’s Function and Vishnu’s Vedic Śakti within Savitṛ
व्यापाराश् चापि कथिता गन्धर्वोरगरक्षसाम् ऋषीणां वालखिल्यानां तथैवाप्सरसां गुरो
vyāpārāś cāpi kathitā gandharvoragarakṣasām ṛṣīṇāṃ vālakhilyānāṃ tathaivāpsarasāṃ guro
O revered teacher, the proper functions and appointed spheres of action have also been described—those of the Gandharvas, the Uragas, and the Rākṣasas; as well as those of the Ṛṣis, the Vālakhilyas, and likewise the Apsarases.
Sage Parāśara (addressing Maitreya as 'guru' in a respectful pedagogic register)
Speaker: Maitreya
Topic: Confirmation/continuation: the assigned functions and spheres of Gandharvas, Uragas, Rākṣasas, Ṛṣis, Vālakhilyas, and Apsarases in the solar/cosmic system
Teaching: Cosmological
Quality: inquisitive
Cosmic Hierarchy: Lokas (worlds)
Concept: The world is sustained by differentiated duties (vyāpāra) assigned to various beings, modeling the primacy of role-based order.
Vedantic Theme: Dharma
Application: Recognize one’s responsibilities and cooperate within social/ecological systems rather than acting in isolation.
Vishishtadvaita: Many distinct beings with distinct functions form one coordinated whole—an image compatible with the Viśiṣṭādvaita ‘unity-in-diversity’ cosmos.
FAQs
The verse emphasizes that creation is not random: each class of being has defined functions, reflecting a deliberate cosmic order that operates under the supreme governance of Vishnu.
By enumerating categories of beings and stating that their respective “vyāpāras” (appointed activities) have been taught, Parāśara frames the cosmos as a structured system of roles and responsibilities.
Even when Vishnu is not named in the verse, the Purana’s cosmology implies that these differentiated duties arise within Vishnu’s sustaining order—supporting a Vaishnava view of the universe as governed by a supreme reality.