Shloka 52

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

Devanagari script

ओंकारब्रह्मसंयुक्तं गायत्र्या चाभिमन्त्रितम् तेन दह्यन्ति ते पापा वज्रीभूतेन वारिणा

Transliteration

oṃkārabrahmasaṃyuktaṃ gāyatryā cābhimantritam tena dahyanti te pāpā vajrībhūtena vāriṇā

Translation

Water united with Oṃkāra and Brahman, and empowered by the Gāyatrī-mantra—by that water their sins are burned away, for in its purifying force it becomes like a thunderbolt.

Word by Word

• ओंकारब्रह्मसंयुक्तम्: joined with Oṃkāra and Brahman
• ओंकारब्रह्मसंयुक्तम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: oṃkāra (प्रातिपदिक) + brahman (प्रातिपदिक) + saṃyukta (कृदन्त, √yuj)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; भूतकृदन्त (क्त), विशेषण (अभिमन्त्रितम्)

• गायत्र्या: with the Gāyatrī (mantra)
• गायत्र्या: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gāyatrī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), एकवचन

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (समुच्चयबोधक)

• अभिमन्त्रितम्: consecrated; enchanted (by mantra)
• अभिमन्त्रितम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: abhi-√mantr (धातु)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; कर्मणि भूतकृदन्त (क्त) — 'consecrated/enchanted'

• तेन: by that; with that
• तेन: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), एकवचन

• दह्यन्ति: are burnt
• दह्यन्ति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: दह् (धातु)
• Form: लट् (वर्तमान), प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन; कर्मणि/आत्मनेपद-प्रयोगः (passive sense: 'are burnt')

• ते: they
• ते: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), बहुवचन

• पापाः: the sinners; the wicked
• पापाः: Apposition (Samānādhikaraṇa/समानाधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pāpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), बहुवचन; विशेष्य (ते)

• वज्रीभूतेन: having become thunderbolt-like
• वज्रीभूतेन: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vajrī (प्रातिपदिक) + bhūta (कृदन्त, √bhū)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), एकवचन; भूतकृदन्त (क्त), विशेषण (वारिणा)

• वारिणा: with water
• वारिणा: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vāri (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), एकवचन

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (teaching Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: How praṇava and gāyatrī empower water as a purifier and protector

Teaching: Devotional

Quality: revealing

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Consecration by praṇava and gāyatrī transforms ordinary elements into vehicles of brahma-tejas that destroy pāpa.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Adopt disciplined japa and mindful sanctification (saṅkalpa, mantra, purity of intent) so daily acts become spiritually elevating.

Vishishtadvaita: Material elements can bear divine potency because the Lord pervades them and responds to properly ordered devotion and mantra.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Para-Brahman

Bhakti Type: shanta

Characters & Entities

• Brahman
• Omkara (Oṃ)
• Gayatri

FAQs

What is the significance of mantra-empowered water in the Vishnu Purana?

This verse presents sanctified water—charged with Oṃ and the Gāyatrī—as an instrument of purification whose spiritual potency is so intense it is likened to a vajra, capable of burning away sin.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the role of Oṃkāra and Gāyatrī in purification?

Parāśara describes purification as arising from water consecrated through two pillars of Vedic sacred sound: Oṃkāra (the primal syllable) and the Gāyatrī-mantra, which together render the rite spiritually transformative.

What is the theological importance of Brahman in this context?

By saying the water is “joined with Brahman,” the verse frames ritual purity as grounded in the Supreme Reality; the mantra does not merely bless externally, but aligns the act with Brahmanic (and in Vaiṣṇava reading, ultimately Viṣṇu-centered) sacred power.