Shloka 47

Devanagari script

प्रागुत्तरे च दिग्भागे धन्वन्तरिबलिं बुधः निर्वपेद् वैश्वदेवं च कर्म कुर्याद् अतः परम्

Transliteration

prāguttare ca digbhāge dhanvantaribaliṃ budhaḥ nirvaped vaiśvadevaṃ ca karma kuryād ataḥ param

Translation

In the north-eastern quarter, the wise householder should set down the offering called the Dhanvantari-bali; then, having performed the Vaiśvadeva oblation, he should proceed with the remaining prescribed duties.

Word by Word

• प्राक्: eastward / in the east
• प्राक्: Adhikarana (Locative sense/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: प्राक् (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (क्रियाविशेषणम्/दिशावाचकम्) — indeclinable adverb (directional: eastward)

• उत्तरे: in the northern (direction)
• उत्तरे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: उत्तर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे/पुंलिङ्गे, सप्तमी (7th/सप्तमी), एकवचनम् — Locative singular (in the north)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (समुच्चयबोधकः) — conjunction ‘and’

• दिग्भागे: in the region of the direction
• दिग्भागे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दिश् (प्रातिपदिक) + भाग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, सप्तमी (7th/सप्तमी), एकवचनम् — Locative singular; तत्पुरुषः (दिशां भागः)

• धन्वन्तरिबलिम्: the offering to Dhanvantari
• धन्वन्तरिबलिम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: धन्वन्तरि (प्रातिपदिक) + बलि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचनम् — Accusative singular; तत्पुरुषः (धन्वन्तरेः बलिः)

• बुधः: the wise man
• बुधः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: बुध (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचनम् — Nominative singular

• निर्वपेत्: should offer
• निर्वपेत्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: निर्-√वप् (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुषः (3rd person), एकवचनम् — should offer/sprinkle

• वैश्वदेवम्: the Vaiśvadeva offering
• वैश्वदेवम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वैश्वदेव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचनम् — Accusative singular

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (समुच्चयबोधकः) — conjunction ‘and’

• कर्म: the rite / act
• कर्म: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कर्मन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचनम् — Accusative singular

• कुर्यात्: should perform
• कुर्यात्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √कृ (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुषः (3rd person), एकवचनम् — should do/perform

• अतः: thereafter
• अतः: Sambandha (Discourse link/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अतः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (हेतौ/अनन्तरार्थे) — indeclinable: thereafter/from this

• परम्: next / afterwards
• परम्: Sambandha (Sequence/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: पर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययीभाववत् प्रयोगः; क्रियाविशेषणम् — adverbial use ‘afterwards/next’

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (teaching Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Daily dharma/householder bali and Vaiśvadeva procedure aligned to directions and deities

Teaching: Ethical

Quality: authoritative

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: A householder sustains ṛta/dharma by performing prescribed bali and Vaiśvadeva offerings in their proper directional order.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Maintain a daily practice of gratitude and sharing—set aside a portion of food/charity before personal consumption, done mindfully and consistently.

Vishishtadvaita: Householder duty is framed as service within Bhagavān’s ordered cosmos, where beings and directions function as His regulated body (śarīra).

Characters & Entities

• Dhanvantari
• Vaishvadeva

FAQs

What is the significance of the Dhanvantari-bali in the Vishnu Purana?

This verse places the Dhanvantari offering as a specific, directionally-situated act within daily dharma, linking household ritual discipline to health, wholeness, and ordered living.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the sequence of daily offerings like bali and Vaiśvadeva?

Parāśara presents them as an ordered progression: first the designated bali (here, to Dhanvantari in the north-east), then the Vaiśvadeva, and only then the rest of one’s prescribed actions.

What is the theological importance of these rites in Vaishnava thought?

They function as dharmic alignment with universal order ultimately grounded in Vishnu’s supreme governance—daily ritual becomes a lived acknowledgment of cosmic sovereignty rather than mere routine.