Shloka 23

वेदव्यास-परम्परा तथा प्रणव-ब्रह्म-स्तुति

Devanagari script

प्रणवावस्थितं नित्यं भूर् भुवः स्वर् इतीर्यते ऋग्यजुःसामाथर्वाणं यत् तस्मै ब्रह्मणे नमः

Transliteration

praṇavāvasthitaṃ nityaṃ bhūr bhuvaḥ svar itīryate ṛgyajuḥsāmātharvāṇaṃ yat tasmai brahmaṇe namaḥ

Translation

Salutations to the eternal Brahman who abides as the Praṇava (Oṃ), who is proclaimed as the sacred utterance “Bhūḥ, Bhuvaḥ, Svaḥ,” and who is the very essence by which the Ṛg, Yajus, Sāman, and Atharvan Vedas are known.

Word by Word

• प्रणव-अवस्थितम्: situated in/established in the praṇava (Om)
• प्रणव-अवस्थितम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: प्रणव (प्रातिपदिक) + अवस्थित (कृदन्त; √स्था धातु)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; कृदन्त-भूतकृदन्त (क्त), विशेषण; समासः षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (प्रणवे अवस्थितम्)

• नित्यम्: always, eternally
• नित्यम्: Kriya-visheshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: नित्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय; क्रियाविशेषण (adverb)

• भूः: Bhū (earth-world)
• भूः: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भू (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; वैदिक-शब्द (लोकनाम)

• भुवः: Bhuvaḥ (mid-region/world)
• भुवः: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भुवस्/भुवः (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; वैदिक-शब्द (लोकनाम)

• स्वः: Svaḥ (heaven-world)
• स्वः: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्वर्/स्वः (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; वैदिक-शब्द (लोकनाम)

• इति: thus
• इति: Sambandha (Quotation marker/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इति (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; उद्धरण-चिह्न/निगमन (quotative particle)

• ईर्यते: is uttered/recited
• ईर्यते: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √ईर् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; आत्मनेपद; कर्मणि-प्रयोग (passive)

• ऋग्-यजुः-साम-अथर्वाणम्: the (collective) Ṛg, Yajus, Sāma and Atharva (Vedas)
• ऋग्-यजुः-साम-अथर्वाणम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ऋच्/ऋग् (प्रातिपदिक) + यजुस् (प्रातिपदिक) + सामन्/साम (प्रातिपदिक) + अथर्वन्/अथर्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; समाहार-द्वन्द्व (collective dvandva)

• यत्: which (that)
• यत्: Sambandha (Relative/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; सम्बन्ध-प्रत्यय (relative pronoun)

• तस्मै: to him/that (one)
• तस्मै: Sampradana (Recipient/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी (4), एकवचन; निर्देश (demonstrative pronoun)

• ब्रह्मणे: to Brahman
• ब्रह्मणे: Sampradana (Recipient/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्रह्मन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी (4), एकवचन

• नमः: salutation
• नमः: Prayojana (Salutation/नमस्कार)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: नमस् (प्रातिपदिक/अव्ययीभाववत् प्रयोग)
• Form: अव्यय; नमस्कारार्थक-निपात (salutatory particle), प्रायः चतुर्थी-संबद्ध (with dative)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (teaching Maitreya; hymn-like praise within the creation narrative)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Nature of Brahman/Vishnu as the supreme principle praised through Vedic utterances

Teaching: Devotional

Quality: authoritative

Cosmological Context

Cosmic Hierarchy: Lokas (worlds)

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Brahman is apprehended and praised as Praṇava (Oṃ) and as the Vedic vyāhṛtis, the source-essence of the four Vedas.

Vedantic Theme: Brahman

Application: Use Oṃ and the vyāhṛtis in daily japa/sandhyā with the understanding that sacred sound points to the Supreme Reality.

Vishishtadvaita: The Supreme is accessible through Vedic sound-forms while remaining the transcendent Brahman they signify.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Para-Brahman

Bhakti Type: Shanta

Jagat Karana: Yes

Characters & Entities

• Brahman
• Praṇava (Om)
• Vyāhṛtis (Bhūḥ, Bhuvaḥ, Svaḥ)
• Ṛg Veda
• Yajur Veda
• Sāma Veda
• Atharva Veda
• Vishnu (implied as Supreme Brahman in Vishnu Purana theology)

FAQs

What is the significance of Praṇava (Om) in this Vishnu Purana verse?

The verse identifies the Supreme Brahman (understood in the Vishnu Purana as Vishnu’s highest reality) as eternally present as Om—the foundational sacred sound that encapsulates and reveals the Absolute.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the relation between the Vyāhṛtis (Bhūḥ, Bhuvaḥ, Svaḥ) and ultimate reality?

By stating that Brahman is ‘proclaimed’ as Bhūḥ, Bhuvaḥ, and Svaḥ, Parāśara frames the three-world formula as a verbal manifestation of the same Supreme principle that pervades all cosmic levels.

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

Even when the verse says “Brahman,” the Vishnu Purana’s theological frame treats the Supreme as Vishnu; thus the Vedas, Om, and the cosmic triad are presented as expressions of Vishnu’s sovereign, all-pervading reality.