Shloka 10

भू-मण्डलसंक्षेपवर्णनम् — सप्तद्वीप-सप्तसमुद्राः, मेरु-मानम्, गङ्गावतरणम्, देववन-सरोवर-लोकपालपुर्यः

Devanagari script

भूपद्मस्यास्य शैलो ऽसौ कर्णिकाकारसंस्थितः

Transliteration

bhūpadmasyāsya śailo 'sau karṇikākārasaṃsthitaḥ

Translation

That mountain stands at the very center—like the seed-cup (pericarp) of this lotus that is the Earth.

Word by Word

• भूपद्मस्य: of the earth-lotus
• भूपद्मस्य: Sambandha (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भू (प्रातिपदिक) + पद्म (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (भू-पद्मम् = पृथिवी-पद्मम्)

• अस्य: of this / its
• अस्य: Sambandha (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: इदम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन

• शैलः: mountain
• शैलः: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शैल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• असौ: that (one)
• असौ: Karta (Apposition)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अदस् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• कर्णिकाकारसंस्थितः: situated in the form of a pericarp
• कर्णिकाकारसंस्थितः: Visheshana (Adjectival predicate)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: कर्णिका (प्रातिपदिक) + आकार (प्रातिपदिक) + संस्थित (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक; सम् + स्था धातु)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त/PPP) ‘संस्थित’; पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; तत्पुरुषसमासः (कर्णिकायाः आकारः यस्य/यत्र)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (speaking to Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Symbolic placement of Meru as the earth-lotus’ central pericarp (karṇikā), explaining bhū-maṇḍala’s lotus analogy

Teaching: Cosmological

Quality: revealing, imagistic

Cosmological Context

Cosmic Hierarchy: Dvipas

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: The world is portrayed as an ordered, auspicious whole—like a lotus—with a meaningful center that stabilizes the cosmic arrangement.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Contemplate the cosmos as purposeful order (ṛta) to cultivate steadiness and reverence in one’s daily life.

Vishishtadvaita: The cosmos is not illusory chaos but a meaningful, structured body suitable as the Lord’s ordered domain (śarīra-bhāva implication).

Vaishnava Theology

Lakshmi Presence: Bhumi

Characters & Entities

• Mount Meru
• Earth (Bhūmi)

FAQs

What is the significance of the Earth being compared to a lotus in the Vishnu Purana?

This verse frames the Earth as a lotus (bhūpadma), emphasizing ordered, sacred design—its center is structurally and symbolically marked by the central mountain.

How does Sage Parāśara explain Mount Meru’s position in the cosmos?

Parāśara presents Meru as centrally situated, like the lotus’s seed-cup, establishing it as the pivotal reference point for the Purāṇic map of the world.

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

By describing a coherent, centered cosmic order, the Purāṇa implicitly reflects Vishnu’s sovereignty as the sustaining principle behind the universe’s structure and harmony.