Shloka 44

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

Devanagari script

इत्य् एते मुनिवर्योक्ता मर्यादापर्वतास् तव जठराद्याः स्थिता मेरोस् येषां द्वौ द्वौ चतुर्दिशम्

Transliteration

ity ete munivaryoktā maryādāparvatās tava jaṭharādyāḥ sthitā meros yeṣāṃ dvau dvau caturdiśam

Translation

O best of sages, these boundary mountains—beginning with Jaṭhara—have been declared to you; they stand around Mount Meru, two by two in the four directions, marking the limits of each quarter.

Word by Word

• इति: thus
• इति: Sambandha (Quotation marker/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इति (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; इति-शब्दः (quotative particle)

• एते: these
• एते: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: एतद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचनम्; सर्वनाम

• मुनिवर्य-उक्ताः: spoken by the best of sages
• मुनिवर्य-उक्ताः: Visheshana (Adjectival modifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: मुनि (प्रातिपदिक) + वर्य (प्रातिपदिक) + उक्त (कृदन्त; √वच् (धातु) → क्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचनम्; क्त-प्रत्ययान्तः भूतकर्मणि/भूतकृत्; समासः—मुनिवर्येण उक्ताः (तृतीया-तत्पुरुष)

• मर्यादा-पर्वताः: boundary mountains
• मर्यादा-पर्वताः: Karta (Subject complement/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मर्यादा (प्रातिपदिक) + पर्वत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचनम्; समासः—मर्यादायाः पर्वताः (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष)

• तव: of you/your
• तव: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: युष्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी (6th), एकवचनम्; सर्वनाम

• जठर-आद्याः: beginning with Jaṭhara
• जठर-आद्याः: Visheshana (Adjectival modifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: जठर (प्रातिपदिक) + आदि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचनम्; समासः—जठरः आदिः येषां ते (बहुव्रीहिवत् प्रयोगः), परन्तु रूपतः आदि-तत्पुरुष (जठरादयः)

• स्थिताः: situated
• स्थिताः: Kriya-visheshana (Predicative/क्रियाविशेषण-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: स्थित (कृदन्त; √स्था (धातु) → क्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचनम्; क्त-प्रत्ययान्तः (past participle)

• मेरोः: of Meru
• मेरोः: Adhikarana (Locative sense via genitive/अधिकरण-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मेरु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे षष्ठी (6th), एकवचनम्

• येषाम्: of which/whose
• येषाम्: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी (6th), बहुवचनम्; सम्बन्धवाचक-सर्वनाम

• द्वौ: two
• द्वौ: Visheshana (Quantifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: द्वि (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे प्रथमा (1st), द्विवचनम्; संख्या

• द्वौ: two (each)
• द्वौ: Visheshana (Quantifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: द्वि (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे प्रथमा (1st), द्विवचनम्; पुनरुक्तिः (distributive: two and two)

• चतुर्दिशम्: in the four directions
• चतुर्दिशम्: Adhikarana (Adverbial location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: चतुर् (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक) + दिश् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययीभाव-समासः; अव्ययवत् प्रयोगः (adverbial: in the four directions)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (speaking to Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Jambūdvīpa’s central mountain Meru and the boundary-mountains marking the quarters

Teaching: Cosmological

Quality: authoritative

Cosmological Context

Cosmic Hierarchy: Lokas

Characters & Entities

• Parāśara
• Maitreya
• Mount Meru
• Jaṭhara (mountain)

FAQs

What is the significance of the maryādā-parvatas (boundary mountains) in the Vishnu Purana?

They function as cosmic boundary-markers—paired in each direction around Meru—showing that the world is ordered, delimited, and structured rather than random.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the organization of space around Mount Meru?

He presents Meru as the central axis and then lists boundary ranges (starting with Jaṭhara), arranged in directional pairs, to convey a systematic cosmological layout.

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

Even when Vishnu is not named in the verse, the ordered cosmos described is understood in the Purāṇic frame as upheld by the Supreme Reality—Vishnu—whose sovereignty manifests as intelligible structure and limits in creation.