Shloka 36

लोकसंस्थानम्, ग्रहदूरी-प्रमाणम्, ब्रह्माण्डावरणानि, विष्णोः जगत्कारणत्वम्

Devanagari script

संनिधानाद् यथाकाशकालाद्याः कारणं तरोः तथैवापरिणामेन विश्वस्य भगवान् हरिः

Transliteration

saṃnidhānād yathākāśakālādyāḥ kāraṇaṃ taroḥ tathaivāpariṇāmena viśvasya bhagavān hariḥ

Translation

Just as, by mere proximity, space, time, and the like become the occasioning causes for a tree, so too—without undergoing any transformation—Bhagavān Hari stands as the cause of the universe.

Word by Word

• संनिधानात्: from proximity
• संनिधानात्: Apādāna (Source)
• Type: Noun
• Root: संनिधान (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th/अपादान), एकवचन; “from proximity/presence”

• यथा: just as
• यथा: Sambandha (Comparative marker)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; उपमानवाचक

• आकाशकालाद्याः: space, time, etc.
• आकाशकालाद्याः: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: आकाश + काल + आदि (प्रातिपदिक; समास)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; “space, time, etc.” (collective)

• कारणम्: cause
• कारणम्: Karma/Pradhāna (Predicate nominal)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कारण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; “cause” (predicate nominal)

• तरोः: of the tree
• तरोः: Ṣaṣṭhī-sambandha (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तरु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, एकवचन; “of the tree”

• तथा: so, likewise
• तथा: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Correlative adverb)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; तुल्यतावाचक

• एव: indeed
• एव: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Emphasis)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधारण

• अपरिणामेन: by non-transformation
• अपरिणामेन: Karaṇa (Instrument/means)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अपरिणाम (प्रातिपदिक; a- + परिणाम)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/करण), एकवचन; “by non-transformation/without change”

• विश्वस्य: of the universe
• विश्वस्य: Ṣaṣṭhī-sambandha (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विश्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, एकवचन; “of the universe”

• भगवान्: the Lord
• भगवान्: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भगवत् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; “the Blessed Lord”

• हरिः: Hari (Vishnu)
• हरिः: Karta (Appositional subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: हरि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; apposition to भगवान्

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (teaching Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: How Hari can be the cause of the universe without undergoing change (aparīṇāma)

Teaching: Philosophical

Quality: revealing

Cosmological Context

Creation Stage: Primary

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Hari is the universe’s cause by mere presence/sovereignty, without personal transformation, just as space and time are occasioning conditions for growth without themselves changing into the tree.

Vedantic Theme: Brahman

Application: Meditate on the divine as the ever-present governor of change while remaining inwardly steady amid life’s transformations.

Vishishtadvaita: Affirms transcendence (unchanging Bhagavān) together with immanence (antaryāmin causality sustaining all), aligning with qualified non-dualism.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Hari

Bhakti Type: Shanta

Antaryamin: Yes

Jagat Karana: Yes

Characters & Entities

• Vishnu

FAQs

What is the significance of apariṇāma (non-transformation) in this Vishnu Purana verse?

It asserts that Vishnu remains unchanged in His own nature even while being the causal ground of the universe—creation depends on Him, but He is not altered by it.

How does Sage Parāśara explain causality here?

He uses an analogy: factors like space and time can be said to be causes “by proximity” for a tree’s arising, and similarly Vishnu is the universal cause without needing to undergo material change.

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

Vishnu is presented as Bhagavān—the sovereign Supreme Reality—whose presence sustains cosmic origination while His essence remains transcendent and immutable.