Shloka 73
सप्तद्वीप-समुद्र-प्रमाणम्: प्लक्षादि-द्वीपवर्णनं, लोकालोक-सीमा, चन्द्र-समुद्र-वृद्धिक्षयः
पुष्करे सवनस्यापि महावीरो ऽभवत् सुतः धातकिश् च तयोस् तत्र द्वे वर्षे नामचिह्निते महावीरं तथैवान्यद् धातकीखण्डसंज्ञितम्
puṣkare savanasyāpi mahāvīro 'bhavat sutaḥ dhātakiś ca tayos tatra dve varṣe nāmacihnite mahāvīraṃ tathaivānyad dhātakīkhaṇḍasaṃjñitam
In Puṣkara-dvīpa too, Sāvana had a son named Mahāvīra, and another named Dhātaki. There, two regions (varṣas) are marked by their very names—one called Mahāvīra, and the other renowned as Dhātakīkhaṇḍa.
Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)
Speaker: Parasara
Topic: Subdivision of Puṣkara-dvīpa into named varṣas and their eponymous rulers/ancestors
Teaching: Historical
Quality: authoritative
Cosmic Hierarchy: Varshas
Concept: Names and regions are preserved through lineage, indicating continuity of memory and responsibility across generations within cosmic order.
Vedantic Theme: Dharma
Application: Honor one’s lineage and place through responsible conduct—let one’s ‘name’ become worthy of remembrance by dharmic living.
Vishishtadvaita: The world is not mere matter but a meaningful, name-bearing order—compatible with the Viśiṣṭādvaita view of jagat as purposeful and value-laden as the Lord’s body.
Key Kings: Sāvana, Mahāvīra, Dhātaki
FAQs
It shows how Purāṇic sacred geography is organized through lineage: regions are identified by the progenitors associated with them, making cosmology readable as an ordered, remembered map.
He presents dvīpas and their internal divisions (varṣas) systematically, often linking places to descendants and names, so the structure of the world is conveyed through genealogical markers.
Even when Viṣṇu is not directly named in the verse, the orderly partitioning of continents and regions implies a universe sustained by a supreme governing principle—Viṣṇu as the ground of cosmic order and intelligibility.