Shloka 16

Devanagari script

पुनश् च रक्ताम्बरधृङ् मायामोहो ऽजितेक्षणः अन्यान् आहासुरान् गत्वा मृद्वल्पमधुराक्षरम्

Transliteration

punaś ca raktāmbaradhṛṅ māyāmoho 'jitekṣaṇaḥ anyān āhāsurān gatvā mṛdvalpamadhurākṣaram

Translation

Then again the Deluder by Māyā—He of unconquered vision—clad in red garments, went to the other Asuras and addressed them in words gentle, brief, and sweet-syllabled.

Word by Word

• पुनः: again
• पुनः: Sambandha (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: पुनः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (काल/पुनरावृत्ति)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Conjunction/समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (समुच्चय)

• रक्ताम्बरधृक्: wearing red garments
• रक्ताम्बरधृक्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: रक्त + अम्बर + धृक् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुष (रक्तम् अम्बरं धृक् = रक्ताम्बरं धारयति)

• मायामोहः: Māyāmoha (personified delusion)
• मायामोहः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: माया + मोह (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुष

• अजितेक्षणः: whose gaze is unconquered / irresistible-eyed
• अजितेक्षणः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अजित + ईक्षण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; समासः—बहुव्रीहि (अजिते ईक्षणे यस्य)

• अन्यान्: other
• अन्यान्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अन्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, बहुवचन

• आह: said
• आह: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: आ + अह्/ब्रू (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (परोक्षभूत), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• असुरान्: asuras
• असुरान्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: असुर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, बहुवचन

• गत्वा: having gone
• गत्वा: Purvakala (Prior action/पूर्वकाल)
• Type: Verb
• Root: गम् (धातु) → गत्वा (क्त्वा)
• Form: अव्ययकृदन्त (क्त्वा), ‘having gone’

• मृदु: gentle
• मृदु: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: मृदु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; ‘soft/gentle’ (अक्षरम्-विशेषणम्)

• अल्प: brief
• अल्प: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अल्प (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; ‘little’ (अक्षरम्-विशेषणम्)

• मधुराक्षरम्: sweet words / sweet speech
• मधुराक्षरम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मधुर + अक्षर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; समासः—कर्मधारय (मधुरम् अक्षरम्)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Description of Māyāmoha’s form and method—gentle speech and persuasive teaching to delude Asuras

Teaching: Devotional

Quality: revealing

Avatara Context

Avatara: Buddha

Purpose: He descended as Māyāmoha to bewilder the Asuras with sweet, non-Vedic counsel so they would abandon yajña and thereby lose their power against the Devas.

Leela: Dharma-upadesa

Dharma Restored: Protection of cosmic order by removing Asuras’ adhikāra to Vedic sacrifice and safeguarding Deva-rule

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: The Lord’s māyā can operate through captivating form and speech to redirect beings according to cosmic necessity.

Vedantic Theme: Maya

Application: Do not equate sweetness or brevity of speech with truth; test teachings by their alignment with dharma and their ultimate telos.

Vishishtadvaita: Shows Viṣṇu’s sovereign governance: māyā is His instrument, used purposefully within the moral-cosmic order, not an independent absolute.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Hari

Characters & Entities

• Asuras
• Māyā (delusive power)
• Ajita (the Unconquered—Vishnu epithet)

FAQs

What is the significance of māyā in this Vishnu Purana verse?

Here māyā is shown as Vishnu’s sovereign power to redirect hostile forces (the Asuras) through delusion, serving the restoration of cosmic order rather than mere deception.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the Lord’s approach to the Asuras in this passage?

Parāśara depicts the Lord as approaching them with controlled speech—gentle, brief, and sweet—highlighting that divine persuasion can be as decisive as divine force.

What is the theological importance of calling him 'Ajita' in this context?

‘Ajita’ underscores Vishnu’s invincibility: even when acting through māyā and soft words, his authority remains supreme and unassailable, aligning with Vaishnava views of Vishnu as the highest governor of order.