Shloka 79

मायामोह-प्रवर्तन, वेदमार्ग-बहिष्कार, तथा पाषण्ड-संसर्ग-दोषः

Māyāmoha’s Delusion, Rejection of the Vedic Path, and the Fault of Heretical Association

Devanagari script

स्मारितेन यथा व्यक्तस् तेनात्मा गृध्रतां गतः अपापा सा पुनश् चैनं बोधयाम् आस भामिनी

Transliteration

smāritena yathā vyaktas tenātmā gṛdhratāṃ gataḥ apāpā sā punaś cainaṃ bodhayām āsa bhāminī

Translation

Just as he had been reminded, so he became fully aware; and by that very recollection his self took on the state of a vulture. Then that blameless, radiant lady again roused him—awakening him to what had occurred.

Word by Word

• smāritena: by being reminded
• smāritena: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: smārīta (स्मारि-त कृदन्त; √smṛ स्मृ धातु, णिच्/प्रेरण)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग/पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन; ‘by (that which is) reminded/caused to remember’

• yathā: as
• yathā: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yathā (अव्यय)
• Form: उपमान/प्रकारवाचक-अव्यय (as/just as)

• vyaktaḥ: became clear/manifest
• vyaktaḥ: Pratijñā/Predicate adjective
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vyakta (प्रातिपदिक/कृदन्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; ‘manifest/clear’

• tena: by that/thereby
• tena: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग/पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन; ‘by that/thereby’

• ātmā: the self
• ātmā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ātman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• gṛdhratām: vulturehood
• gṛdhratām: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gṛdhra + tā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; भाववाचक-तद्धित (state of being a vulture)

• gataḥ: attained
• gataḥ: Kriyā (Predicative participle/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: gam (गम् धातु) + kta (क्त)
• Form: क्त-कृदन्त, पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; ‘gone/attained’

• apāpā: sinless
• apāpā: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a- + pāpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; नञ्-समास/निषेध: ‘sinless’

• sā: she
• sā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• punaḥ: again
• punaḥ: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Adverb)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: punaḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: पुनरावृत्तिवाचक-अव्यय (again)

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

• enam: him
• enam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: idam (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; एनद्-आदेश (enam = him/this)

• bodhayām: she reminded/awakened (him)
• bodhayām: Kriyā (Main verb complex/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: budh (बुध् धातु) + ṇic (णिच्)
• Form: लिट्/लङ्-सम्भाव्य?; वस्तुतः ‘बोधयाम् आस’ = णिजन्त-परस्मैपद, लिट्-परिप्रयोग (periphrastic perfect): उत्तम/मध्यम?; यहाँ 3rd sg अर्थे: ‘she caused to know/reminded’ (परिप्रयोग)

• āsa: did/was (aux.)
• āsa: Kriyā (Auxiliary/सहायक-क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: as (अस् धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect) सहायक-क्रिया, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन; परिप्रयोगे सहायक

• bhāminī: the passionate/angry woman
• bhāminī: Karta (Apposition to sā)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhāminī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; स्त्रीवाचक-नाम

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: How recollection (smṛti) and inner awakening can arise even amid degraded embodiment.

Teaching: Ethical

Quality: revealing

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Smṛti can pierce ignorance and restore self-awareness even when the jīva is wrapped in an inferior embodiment.

Vedantic Theme: Atman

Application: Cultivate daily remembrance (japa, svādhyāya) so that clarity can interrupt harmful patterns and reorient life.

Vishishtadvaita: Antaryāmin-guided awakening: the Lord within enables memory and recognition, while the jīva’s agency cooperates through receptivity.

Vaishnava Theology

Antaryamin: Yes

FAQs

What is the significance of remembrance (smṛti) in this verse of the Vishnu Purana?

Remembrance functions as the catalytic force that restores awareness and immediately precipitates a karmically determined transformation, showing how inner cognition can disclose the fruit of prior causes.

How does Sage Parāśara explain transformation and consequence in this context?

Through a narrative chain—reminder → awakening → change of state—Parāśara presents metamorphosis as orderly and law-governed, not random, aligning events with dharma and causality.

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

Even when Vishnu is not named in the verse, the episode operates within a Vishnu-ordered cosmos where moral law and destiny unfold under the Supreme Lord’s sustaining sovereignty.