Shloka 92

Devanagari script

अन्नं बलाय मे भूमेर् अपाम् अग्न्यनिलस्य च भवत्व् एतत् परिणतौ ममास्त्व् अव्याहतं सुखम्

Transliteration

annaṃ balāya me bhūmer apām agnyanilasya ca bhavatv etat pariṇatau mamāstv avyāhataṃ sukham

Translation

May food become strength for me—born of Earth, of Waters, and of Fire and Wind as well. And as these elements ripen in their transformation, may unimpeded, unbroken happiness abide in me.

Word by Word

• अन्नम्: food
• अन्नम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अन्न (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; here as कर्तृ/कर्म depending on construction (food)

• बलाय: for strength
• बलाय: Sampradana (Recipient/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: बल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी (4), एकवचन; प्रयोजन/सम्प्रदान (for the sake of strength)

• मे: of me / my
• मे: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठी-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी (6), एकवचन; enclitic pronoun (my/of me)

• भूमेः: of the earth
• भूमेः: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठी-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भूमि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6), एकवचन; source/possessor (of earth)

• अपाम्: of the waters
• अपाम्: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठी-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अप् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6), बहुवचन; (of waters)

• अग्न्यनिलस्य: of fire and wind
• अग्न्यनिलस्य: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठी-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अग्नि (प्रातिपदिक) + अनिल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6), एकवचन; द्वन्द्व-समास (अग्निः च अनिलः च) → ‘of fire-and-wind’ (as a collective)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-निपात (conjunction)

• भवतु: let it be
• भवतु: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भू (धातु)
• Form: लोट् (imperative), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद; ‘let it be/become’

• एतत्: this
• एतत्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: एतद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; demonstrative (this)

• परिणतौ: in digestion/assimilation
• परिणतौ: Adhikarana (Locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: परिणति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7), एकवचन; अधिकरण (in digestion/assimilation)

• मम: of me
• मम: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठी-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी (6), एकवचन; (of me)

• अस्तु: let there be
• अस्तु: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: अस् (धातु)
• Form: लोट् (imperative), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद; ‘let there be’

• अव्याहतम्: unobstructed
• अव्याहतम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अव्याहत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; विशेषण of ‘सुखम्’ (unobstructed)

• सुखम्: comfort, well-being
• सुखम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सुख (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; predicate/desired state (happiness/comfort)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (instructing Maitreya; voicing a litany-style prayer within the narrative)

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Food is understood as a product of the elemental matrix (earth, water, fire, wind), and its proper transformation supports steady happiness.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Eat with mindful gratitude and attention to digestion, viewing nourishment as harmonizing the body’s elemental balance.

Vishishtadvaita: The body’s material processes can be treated as sacred when aligned to the divine order sustaining them.

Vaishnava Theology

Bhakti Type: Shanta

Characters & Entities

• Earth (Bhūmi)
• Waters (Āpaḥ)
• Fire (Agni)
• Wind (Anila/Vāyu)

FAQs

What is the significance of food being linked to Earth, Water, Fire, and Wind in the Vishnu Purana?

This verse frames nourishment as an elemental synthesis: Earth provides substance, Water cohesion, Fire digestion/transformative power, and Wind vital motion—showing food as a function of cosmic order sustaining embodied life.

How does Sage Parāśara explain transformation (pariṇati) in this context?

Parāśara uses pariṇati as the natural maturation of causes into effects—elements becoming nourishment and vitality—so the prayer asks that this lawful transformation yield strength and uninterrupted well-being.

What is the theological importance of Lord Vishnu here?

Even when Vishnu is not named, the verse assumes a Vaishnava cosmology in which the stability of elemental processes and the gift of sustenance ultimately rest on the Supreme Order upheld by Vishnu.