Shloka 25

मेरु-प्रमाणम्, सप्त-पाताल-वर्णनम्, तथा अनन्त-शेष-तत्त्वम्

Devanagari script

यस्य नागवधूहस्तैर् लेपितं हरिचन्दनम् मुहुः श्वासानिलापास्तं याति दिक्षूदवासताम्

Transliteration

yasya nāgavadhūhastair lepitaṃ haricandanam muhuḥ śvāsānilāpāstaṃ yāti dikṣūdavāsatām

Translation

His body is anointed again and again with Hari-sandal by the hands of Nāga maidens; its fragrance, borne ceaselessly on the breeze of His own breath, spreads to every quarter and reaches even those who dwell far away.

Word by Word

• यस्य: whose
• यस्य: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th), एकवचन; सम्बन्धे

• नाग: of serpent(-women)
• नाग: Sambandha/Modifier (सम्बन्ध/विशेषण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नाग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (नागानां वधूनाम् हस्तैः इति); समासाङ्ग (पूर्वपद)

• वधू: brides, women
• वधू: Sambandha/Modifier (सम्बन्ध/विशेषण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वधू (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष; समासाङ्ग (मध्यपद)

• हस्तैः: with hands
• हस्तैः: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: हस्त (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd), बहुवचन; समस्तपद (नागवधूहस्तैः)

• लेपितम्: smeared, anointed
• लेपितम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: लिप् (धातु) + क्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past passive participle), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषण (हरिचन्दनम्)

• हरि: of Hari (Vishnu)
• हरि: Sambandha/Modifier (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: हरि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (हरेः चन्दनम्); समासाङ्ग (पूर्वपद)

• चन्दनम्: sandalwood (paste)
• चन्दनम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: चन्दन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; समस्तपद (हरिचन्दनम्)

• मुहुः: again and again, repeatedly
• मुहुः: Kriya-vishesana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: मुहुः (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्यय (adverb of time/frequency)

• श्वास: breath
• श्वास: Sambandha/Modifier (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: श्वास (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (श्वासस्य अनिलः); समासाङ्ग (पूर्वपद)

• अनिल: wind
• अनिल: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अनिल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; समस्तपद (श्वासानिलः)

• अपास्तम्: carried away, removed
• अपास्तम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अप + अस् (धातु) + क्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (PPP), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; उपसर्गयुक्त; (तं) विशेषण

• याति: goes
• याति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: या (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन

• दिक्षु: in the directions
• दिक्षु: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दिश् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), बहुवचन

• उदवासताम्: of those dwelling above (in the heavens)
• उदवासताम्: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: उद् + वस् (धातु) + शतृ (कृदन्त)
• Form: वर्तमानकृदन्त (present active participle), पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th), बहुवचन; ‘उद्वसत्’ = dwelling above; जनसमूहवाचक

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Description of Śeṣa/Ananta and his divine service, continuing the cosmographic account

Teaching: Cosmological

Quality: evocative

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: The Lord’s sanctity and glory are so pervasive that even the ‘breath’ of His devoted cosmic servant spreads fragrance to all quarters.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Let devotion become ‘fragrant’ through repeated practice—japa, pūjā, and ethical purity—so its influence naturally spreads to one’s surroundings.

Vishishtadvaita: Divine service (śeṣatva) is real and relational: exalted beings lovingly serve the Supreme, and that service sanctifies the cosmos.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Narayana (cosmic)

Bhakti Type: Shanta

Characters & Entities

• Nāgas
• Nāga maidens
• Hari (Vishnu)

FAQs

What is the significance of haricandana (Hari-sandal paste) in the Vishnu Purana?

It functions as a devotional and royal marker—signifying the Lord’s auspiciousness and beauty, while the spreading fragrance symbolizes his pervasive, beneficent presence.

How does Sage Parāśara communicate divine sovereignty through sensory imagery here?

By describing fragrance carried by the Lord’s breath to all directions, he conveys that the Lord’s influence naturally extends everywhere, reaching even the distant—an embodied metaphor for cosmic pervasion.

What is the theological importance of 'Hari' in this context?

“Hari” points to Vishnu as the supreme auspicious Lord; even a poetic detail like fragrance becomes a sign of the Supreme Reality whose presence and grace cannot be confined to one place.