Shloka 8

भारतवर्षमहात्म्यम् — कर्मभूमित्वम्, नवभेदाः, कुलपर्वताः-नद्यः-जनपदाः, युगचक्रविशेषः, यज्ञपुरुषविष्णुपूजा

Devanagari script

योजनानां सहस्रं तु द्वीपो ऽयं दक्षिणोत्तरात् पूर्वे किराता यस्यान्ते पश्चिमे यवनाः स्थिताः

Transliteration

yojanānāṃ sahasraṃ tu dvīpo 'yaṃ dakṣiṇottarāt pūrve kirātā yasyānte paścime yavanāḥ sthitāḥ

Translation

This dvīpa extends a thousand yojanas from south to north. On its eastern edge dwell the Kirātas, and on its western boundary stand the Yavanas.

Word by Word

• योजनानाम्: of yojanas
• योजनानाम्: Shashthi-Sambandha (Measure)
• Type: Noun
• Root: योजन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, बहुवचन

• सहस्रम्: a thousand
• सहस्रम्: Karma/Pramana (Measure complement)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सहस्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; परिमाणवाचक (measure)

• तु: indeed
• तु: Sambandha (Particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (particle), विशेषार्थ

• द्वीपः: the island/region
• द्वीपः: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: द्वीप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• अयम्: this
• अयम्: Karta (Apposition)
• Type: Noun
• Root: इदम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• दक्षिणोत्तरात्: from south to north
• दक्षिणोत्तरात्: Apadana/Desha (Extent/Source)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: दक्षिण + उत्तर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: द्वन्द्व-समास (दक्षिण-उत्तर), पञ्चमी (Ablative/5th), एकवचन; दिशावाचक (from south to north / in south-north extent)

• पूर्वे: in the east
• पूर्वे: Adhikarana (Location)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पूर्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग/पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (Locative/7th), एकवचन; दिशावाचक (in the east)

• किराताः: Kirātas
• किराताः: Karta (Subject of implied 'are')
• Type: Noun
• Root: किरात (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन

• यस्य: of which
• यस्य: Shashthi-Sambandha
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, एकवचन

• अन्ते: at the end/border
• अन्ते: Adhikarana (Location)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अन्त (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (Locative/7th), एकवचन

• पश्चिमे: in the west
• पश्चिमे: Adhikarana (Location)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पश्चिम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग/पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन; दिशावाचक (in the west)

• यवनाः: Yavanas
• यवनाः: Karta (Subject of implied 'are')
• Type: Noun
• Root: यवन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन

• स्थिताः: are situated
• स्थिताः: Kriya (Predicative participle)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: √स्था (धातु)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (past participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; कर्तरि प्रयोगे विशेषण (standing/located)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (speaking to Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Spatial extent of Bhārata and its boundary peoples (Kirātas in the east, Yavanas in the west).

Teaching: Cosmological

Quality: descriptive

Cosmological Context

Cosmic Hierarchy: Varshas

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Narayana

Lakshmi Presence: Bhumi

Characters & Entities

• Parāśara
• Maitreya
• Jambūdvīpa
• Kirātas
• Yavanas

FAQs

What is the significance of naming Kirātas and Yavanas in the Vishnu Purana?

The verse uses Kirātas (east) and Yavanas (west) as boundary markers, situating the inhabited region within a divinely ordered geography rather than merely listing tribes.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the world’s structure here?

He frames geography through measurable extent (yojanas) and clear frontiers, presenting the world as a structured, intelligible domain within the larger cosmic arrangement.

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

Even in geographic description, the Purāṇa implies a cosmos governed by higher order—Vishnu as the sustaining principle whose sovereignty underlies the world’s arrangement and limits.