Shloka 25

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

Devanagari script

अरुणोदं महाभद्रम् असितोदं समानसम् सरांस्य् एतानि चत्वारि देवभोग्यानि सर्वदा

Transliteration

aruṇodaṃ mahābhadram asitodaṃ samānasam sarāṃsy etāni catvāri devabhogyāni sarvadā

Translation

Aruṇoda, Mahābhadra, Asitoda, and Samānasa—these are the four lakes, ever held fit for the gods’ enjoyment and delight.

Word by Word

• अरुणोदम्: Aruṇoda (name of a lake)
• अरुणोदम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अरुणोद (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; accusative singular (neuter)

• महाभद्रम्: Mahābhadra (name)
• महाभद्रम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महाभद्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; accusative singular (neuter); समास: महा + भद्र

• असितोदम्: Asitoda (name)
• असितोदम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: असितोद (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; accusative singular (neuter)

• समानसम्: Samānasa (name)
• समानसम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: समानस (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; accusative singular (neuter)

• सरांसि: lakes
• सरांसि: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सरस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), बहुवचन; nominative/accusative plural (neuter)

• एतानि: these
• एतानि: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: एतद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), बहुवचन; demonstrative pronoun used adjectivally

• चत्वारि: four
• चत्वारि: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: चतुर् (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), बहुवचन; numeral 'four'

• देवभोग्यानि: enjoyable by the gods
• देवभोग्यानि: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: देव + भोग्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), बहुवचन; 'fit for enjoyment by gods' (genitive-tatpuruṣa: देवानां भोग्यानि)

• सर्वदा: always
• सर्वदा: Kriya-visheshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: सर्वदा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; कालवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (adverb of time)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (speaking to Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Sacred geography: lakes and enjoyments of the gods in the ordered cosmos

Teaching: Cosmological

Quality: revealing

Cosmological Context

Cosmic Hierarchy: Lokas

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: The ordered cosmos includes realms of divine enjoyment, yet these too exist within Viṣṇu’s sustaining causality and governance.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Contemplate cosmic order to cultivate humility and detachment: even ‘heavenly’ pleasures are conditioned and subordinate to the Supreme.

Vishishtadvaita: Viṣṇu as jagat-kāraṇa and niyantṛ (governor) of all graded realms—divine and human—within one integrated reality.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Para-Brahman (philosophical)

Bhakti Type: Shanta (peaceful)

Jagat Karana: Yes

Characters & Entities

• Parāśara
• Maitreya
• Devas
• Aruṇoda
• Mahābhadra
• Asitoda
• Samānasa
• Vishnu

FAQs

What is the significance of the four lakes (sarāṁsi) named in this verse in the Vishnu Purana?

They mark a sacred, cosmographic feature of Jambūdvīpa—four divinely associated lakes described as perpetually “deva-bhogyāni,” indicating regions set apart for celestial enjoyment within the Purāṇic world-map.

How does Sage Parāśara explain divine geography in Book 2 of the Vishnu Purana?

He presents a structured map of the universe—continents, mountains, rivers, and lakes—where certain places are designated for gods and higher beings, showing a cosmos arranged by dharma and sustained by Viṣṇu’s sovereignty.

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

Even in geographic description, the text implies that cosmic order and the allotment of realms (including deva-enjoyment regions) ultimately rest on Viṣṇu as the supreme sustaining reality behind the universe’s structure.