Shloka 1

लोकसंस्थानम्, ग्रहदूरी-प्रमाणम्, ब्रह्माण्डावरणानि, विष्णोः जगत्कारणत्वम्

Devanagari script

कथितं भवता ब्रह्मन् ममैतद् अखिलं त्वया भुवर्लोकादिकांल् लोकाञ् श्रोतुम् इच्छाम्य् अहं मुने

Transliteration

kathitaṃ bhavatā brahman mamaitad akhilaṃ tvayā bhuvarlokādikāṃl lokāñ śrotum icchāmy ahaṃ mune

Translation

O Brahman, you have explained all of this to me in full. Now, O sage, I wish to hear about the worlds beginning with Bhuvarloka—about their order and nature.

Word by Word

• कथितम्: has been described
• कथितम्: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: कथ् (धातु) + क्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (PPP, क्त); नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; “has been told”

• भवता: by you
• भवता: Karana (Agent-instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भवत् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; तृतीया, एकवचन; आदरार्थ (honorific)

• ब्रह्मन्: O Brahman (revered one)
• ब्रह्मन्: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्रह्मन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; सम्बोधन, एकवचन

• मम: my, of me
• मम: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: उत्तमपुरुष-सर्वनाम; षष्ठी, एकवचन

• एतत्: this
• एतत्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: एतद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन

• अखिलम्: entire, whole
• अखिलम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अखिल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषण (qualifying etat)

• त्वया: by you
• त्वया: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: युष्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: मध्यमपुरुष-सर्वनाम; तृतीया, एकवचन

• भुवर्लोकादिकान्: the worlds beginning with Bhuvarloka
• भुवर्लोकादिकान्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भुवर्लोक + आदिक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; द्वितीया, बहुवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुष (षष्ठी/सम्बन्ध): भुवर्लोकस्य आदयः ये (the worlds beginning with Bhuvarloka)

• लोकान्: worlds
• लोकान्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: लोक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; द्वितीया, बहुवचन; (भुवर्लोकादिकान् लोकान्—apposition)

• श्रोतुम्: to hear
• श्रोतुम्: Prayojana (Purpose/प्रयोजन)
• Type: Verb
• Root: श्रु (धातु) + तुमुन् (कृदन्त)
• Form: तुमुनन्त (infinitive)

• इच्छामि: I wish
• इच्छामि: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: इष्/इच्छ् (धातु)
• Form: लट्; उत्तमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• अहम्: I
• अहम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: उत्तमपुरुष-सर्वनाम; प्रथमा, एकवचन

• मुने: O sage
• मुने: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मुनि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; सम्बोधन, एकवचन

Speaker

Maitreya (addressing Sage Parāśara)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Maitreya

Topic: Order and nature of the worlds (lokas) beginning with Bhuvarloka

Teaching: Cosmological

Quality: inquisitive

Cosmological Context

Cosmic Hierarchy: Lokas

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Understanding reality includes knowing the ordered strata of lokas and their characteristics, not merely the earth’s geography.

Application: Use cosmological contemplation to expand perspective beyond immediate life, cultivating humility and steadiness in dharma.

Vishishtadvaita: Frames the universe as a meaningful, graded order—compatible with a theistic cosmos under a supreme Lord’s governance.

Characters & Entities

• Maitreya
• Parāśara
• Bhuvarloka
• Lokas

FAQs

What is the significance of Bhuvarloka and the lokas in the Vishnu Purana?

This verse marks Maitreya’s transition from prior teaching to a focused inquiry into the layered world-spheres (lokas), beginning with Bhuvarloka, a key unit in the Purana’s map of cosmic order.

How does Sage Parāśara explain cosmology in the Vishnu Purana?

He teaches through a structured dialogue: after completing one topic “in full,” he proceeds step-by-step into the next—here, the systematic description of lokas as part of Bhuvana-kośa.

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

Even when Vishnu is not named in the verse, the Vishnu Purana’s cosmology is framed as an ordered universe upheld by the Supreme Reality (Vishnu), making geographic and cosmic description a form of theological exposition.