Shloka 81

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

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

Devanagari script

ततः काकत्वम् आपन्नं समनन्तरजन्मनि उवाच तन्वी भर्तारम् उपलभ्यात्मयोगतः

Transliteration

tataḥ kākatvam āpannaṃ samanantarajanmani uvāca tanvī bhartāram upalabhyātmayogataḥ

Translation

Thereafter, in her very next birth she took on the state of a crow; yet the slender one, having found her husband again through the power of inner yoga, spoke to him.

Word by Word

• tataḥ: then
• tataḥ: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Adverb)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tataḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: ततः-शब्दः, अपादान/क्रमवाचक-अव्यय (then/thereupon)

• kākatvam: crowhood
• kākatvam: Karma (Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kāka + tva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; भाववाचक-तद्धित (state of being a crow)

• āpannam: attained
• āpannam: Karma (Object complement)
• Type: Verb
• Root: āp (आप्/आप्नोति; √āp आप् धातु) + kta (क्त)
• Form: क्त-कृदन्त, नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; ‘attained’ (agreeing with kākatvam)

• samanantarajanmani: in the next birth
• samanantarajanmani: Adhikarana (Location/time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: samanantara + janman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन; ‘in the immediately following birth’

• uvāca: said
• uvāca: Kriyā (Main verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vac (वच् धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• tanvī: the slender woman
• tanvī: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tanvī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; ‘slender woman’

• bhartāram: (her) husband
• bhartāram: Karma (Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhartṛ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• upalabhya: having found
• upalabhya: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Prior action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: upa + labh (लभ् धातु) + ल्यप् (ल्यप्)
• Form: ल्यप्-प्रत्ययान्त अव्ययकृदन्त (gerund): ‘having found/obtained’

• ātmayogataḥ: through the power of self-yoga
• ātmayogataḥ: Hetu (Cause/हेतु)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ātman + yoga + tas (प्रातिपदिक/अव्यय-प्रत्यय)
• Form: तसिल्-प्रत्ययान्त अव्यय (ablatival adverb): ‘from/through self-yoga’

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Yogic inner recognition (ātma-yoga) transcending outward form across births.

Teaching: Devotional

Quality: revealing

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Through ātma-yoga, inner recognition can apprehend identity beyond external embodiment and re-establish right understanding.

Vedantic Theme: Atman

Application: Practice meditation and self-discipline so discernment is not captive to appearances; relate to others by inner worth rather than surface identity.

Vishishtadvaita: Embodiment is a changing upādhi, while the jīva persists as a real, dependent self capable of God-enabled knowledge through yoga and grace.

Vaishnava Theology

Antaryamin: Yes

FAQs

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

It highlights karmic continuity: identity can shift radically in form (even into an animal birth), yet the moral and relational thread can persist across lives.

How does Sage Parāśara explain recognition across births here?

Through “ātma-yoga”—an inward discipline by which one perceives and remembers beyond external bodies, enabling recognition of a spouse despite a changed birth.

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

Even when Vishnu is not named, the episode operates within Vishnu’s sovereign cosmic order—where karma, dharma, and the soul’s journey are upheld under the Supreme Reality that the Purana ultimately identifies with Vishnu.