Shloka 40

सूर्यरथ-कालचक्र-आयनविभागः, संध्योपासनम्, देवयान-पितृयानम्, विष्णुपद-गङ्गावतरणम्

Devanagari script

कुलालचक्रनाभिस् तु यथा तत्रैव वर्तते ध्रुवस् तथा हि मैत्रेय तत्रैव परिवर्तते

Transliteration

kulālacakranābhis tu yathā tatraiva vartate dhruvas tathā hi maitreya tatraiva parivartate

Translation

Just as the hub of a potter’s wheel remains fixed in its own place while the wheel turns around it, so too, O Maitreya, does Dhruva remain established there—while all else revolves about him.

Word by Word

• कुलालचक्रनाभिः: the hub of the potter’s wheel
• कुलालचक्रनाभिः: Karta (Subject in simile/उपमान-कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कुलाल + चक्र + नाभि (प्रातिपदिक); समासः
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष/समाहारार्थः ‘the hub of the potter’s wheel’

• तु: but; indeed
• तु: Sambandha (Particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, निपात (contrast/emphasis)

• यथा: as
• यथा: Sambandha (Comparison/उपमा)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, उपमानवाचक ‘as’

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, देशवाचक (adverb of place)

• एव: indeed; just
• एव: Sambandha (Particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, निपात (emphasis)

• वर्तते: remains; stays
• वर्तते: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वृत् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), आत्मनेपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; ‘remains/exists’

• ध्रुवः: Dhruva
• ध्रुवः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ध्रुव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन

• तथा: thus
• तथा: Sambandha (Manner/प्रकार)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, प्रकारवाचक ‘thus/so’

• हि: indeed; for
• हि: Sambandha (Particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: हि (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, निपात (reason/emphasis) ‘for/indeed’

• मैत्रेय: O Maitreya
• मैत्रेय: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मैत्रेय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th/Vocative), एकवचन

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, देशवाचक

• एव: just; indeed
• एव: Sambandha (Particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, निपात (emphasis)

• परिवर्तते: revolves; turns around
• परिवर्तते: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: परि + वृत् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), आत्मनेपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; उपसर्गयुक्तः ‘turns around/rotates’

Speaker

Sage Parāśara

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Structure of cosmic motions/time-markers (sun’s course and the axial stability of Dhruva)

Teaching: Cosmological

Quality: authoritative

Cosmological Context

Cosmic Hierarchy: Lokas

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Dhruva remains fixed like the hub of a potter’s wheel, while the rest of the cosmic mechanism turns around him—an image for stability within universal motion.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Keep one unwavering spiritual center (īṣṭa-devatā, mantra, or dharma) so that worldly ‘rotation’ does not disturb inner orientation.

Vishishtadvaita: The teacher-disciple framing (‘O Maitreya’) reinforces revealed cosmology as a means to perceive the Lord’s orderly governance—transcendent stability supporting immanent change.

Characters & Entities

• Dhruva
• Maitreya

FAQs

What is the significance of Dhruva in the Vishnu Purana’s cosmology?

This verse presents Dhruva as the fixed pivot—like the hub of a potter’s wheel—around which the heavens are understood to revolve, symbolizing stability and divine order in the cosmos.

How does Sage Parāśara explain cosmic motion to Maitreya here?

Parāśara uses a concrete analogy: the hub stays in place while the wheel spins, illustrating how Dhruva remains steady while the celestial sphere moves around him.

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

Even when not named in the verse, the teaching fits Vaishnava cosmology: the ordered revolutions of the heavens imply an underlying sustaining principle—Vishnu as the Supreme regulator of cosmic stability and motion.