Shloka 20

Devanagari script

सर्वभूतान्य् अभेदेन ददृशे स तदात्मनः तथा ब्रह्म ततो मुक्तिम् अवाप परमां द्विजः

Transliteration

sarvabhūtāny abhedena dadṛśe sa tadātmanaḥ tathā brahma tato muktim avāpa paramāṃ dvijaḥ

Translation

Seeing all beings without any sense of difference—as none other than the Self—and realizing Brahman in the same way, that twice-born sage attained the supreme liberation thereafter.

Word by Word

• सर्व-भूतानि: all beings
• सर्व-भूतानि: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सर्व (प्रातिपदिक) + भूत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), बहुवचन; समासः—कर्मधारयः (सर्वाणि भूतानि)

• अभेदेन: with non-difference
• अभेदेन: Karana (Manner/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अभेद (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd), एकवचन; प्रकारार्थे (with non-difference)

• ददृशे: saw; beheld
• ददृशे: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √दृश् (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; आत्मनेपद

• सः: he
• सः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• तद्-आत्मनः: as (his) own self
• तद्-आत्मनः: Sambandha (Genitive/षष्ठी-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) + आत्मन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (तस्य आत्मा → तदात्मा; तदात्मनः = 'of his own self/whose self is that')

• तथा: thus; likewise
• तथा: Sambandha (Adverbial/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; प्रकारार्थक (thus; likewise)

• ब्रह्म: Brahman
• ब्रह्म: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्रह्मन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन (कर्मरूपेण)

• ततः: thereupon; from that
• ततः: Sambandha (Adverbial/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (अव्यय; तद् + तस्)
• Form: अव्यय; अपादान/हेतुअर्थक (thereupon/from that)

• मुक्तिम्: liberation
• मुक्तिम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मुक्ति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• अवाप: attained
• अवाप: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √आप् (धातु) + अव उपसर्ग
• Form: लिट्-लकार (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• परमाम्: supreme
• परमाम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: परम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; विशेषण (मुक्तिम्)

• द्विजः: the twice-born (brahmin)
• द्विजः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: द्विज (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: When all beings are seen as non-different from the Self and Brahman is realized accordingly, supreme liberation is attained.

Vedantic Theme: Moksha

Application: Practice seeing the same divine Self in others through daily reflection, reduced reactivity, and compassionate conduct; let this vision guide choices.

Vishishtadvaita: A Vaiṣṇava-Viśiṣṭādvaita reading can take 'abheda-darśana' as inseparability (apr̥thak-siddhi): all selves and matter exist as modes of Brahman, the indwelling Lord (antaryāmin), yielding liberation through God-centered realization.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Para-Brahman

Bhakti Type: Shanta

Antaryamin: Yes

Characters & Entities

• Brahman
• Dvija (twice-born sage)
• Sarva-bhūta (all beings)

FAQs

What is the significance of seeing all beings without difference (abheda) in the Vishnu Purana?

This verse presents abheda-darśana—perceiving all beings as grounded in one Self—as the direct vision that culminates in supreme liberation.

How does Sage Parāśara explain liberation (moksha) in this context?

Parāśara frames moksha as the fruit of realized knowledge: when one recognizes Brahman and sees the same Self in all beings, liberation naturally follows.

What is the theological importance of Vishnu here if the verse says 'Brahman'?

In the Vishnu Purana’s Vaishnava framework, Brahman is not an abstract principle divorced from divinity; it points to the Supreme Reality identified with Vishnu as the inner ruler and ground of all existence.