Shloka 20

Devanagari script

हिमाम्बुघर्मवृष्टीनां कर्ता भर्ता च यः प्रभुः तस्मै त्रिकालभूताय नमः सूर्याय वेधसे

Transliteration

himāmbugharmavṛṣṭīnāṃ kartā bhartā ca yaḥ prabhuḥ tasmai trikālabhūtāya namaḥ sūryāya vedhase

Translation

Salutations to that Sun—Lord and ordainer—who is the maker and sustainer of cold, water, heat, and rain; to Him who abides as the reality of the three times, the sovereign intelligence that measures out the world.

Word by Word

• हिमाम्बुघर्मवृष्टीनाम्: of snow, water, heat, and rain
• हिमाम्बुघर्मवृष्टीनाम्: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: हिम + अम्बु + घर्म + वृष्टि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (वृष्टि-शब्दः प्रधानः), षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), बहुवचन; द्वन्द्वसमासः—हिम-अम्बु-घर्म-वृष्टयः

• कर्ता: maker; doer
• कर्ता: Karta (Subject complement)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कृ (धातु) + तृच् (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; कृदन्तः—तृच्-प्रत्ययान्तः ‘कर्तृ’

• भर्ता: supporter; sustainer
• भर्ता: Karta (Subject complement)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भृ (धातु) + तृच् (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; कृदन्तः—तृच्-प्रत्ययान्तः ‘भर्तृ’

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, समुच्चयबोधक (conjunction)

• यः: who
• यः: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; सम्बन्धवाचकः

• प्रभुः: the Lord
• प्रभुः: Karta (Apposition)
• Type: Noun
• Root: प्रभु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• तस्मै: to him
• तस्मै: Sampradana (Recipient)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी (4th/Dative), एकवचन

• त्रिकालभूताय: to (him) existing in the three times
• त्रिकालभूताय: Sampradana (Recipient)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: त्रि + काल + भूत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी (4th/Dative), एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः—त्रिषु कालेषु भूतः/स्थितः

• नमः: homage
• नमः: Sambodhana/Prayojana (Salutation marker)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: नमस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (निपात/उद्गारः), नमस्कारार्थकः

• सूर्याय: to the Sun
• सूर्याय: Sampradana (Recipient)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सूर्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी (4th/Dative), एकवचन

• वेधसे: to the Ordainer/Creator (Vedhas)
• वेधसे: Sampradana (Recipient)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वेधस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी (4th/Dative), एकवचन

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (narrating a hymn within his discourse to Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Sūrya as vedhas (ordainer) who regulates climate forces and embodies the three times (trikāla)

Teaching: Cosmological

Quality: authoritative

Cosmological Context

Creation Stage: Secondary

Cosmic Hierarchy: Lokas (worlds)

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Sūrya, as sovereign ordainer, produces and sustains cold, water, heat, and rain and stands as the reality underlying past, present, and future.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Live with ṛtu- and time-awareness: align work, diet, and worship rhythms with seasons and daily solar cycles as a dharmic discipline.

Vishishtadvaita: The Lord’s governance (niyantṛtva) is expressed through natural law and time—immanence without denying transcendence.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Narayana (cosmic)

Bhakti Type: Shanta

Antaryamin: Yes

Characters & Entities

• Surya

FAQs

What is the significance of Sūrya being called the maker and sustainer of cold, water, heat, and rain in the Vishnu Purana?

It frames the Sun as the governing power behind the elemental and seasonal rhythms that uphold life and cosmic order, not merely as a physical luminary.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the idea of 'trikāla' (three times) here?

By praising Sūrya as 'trikālabhūta', the verse presents him as the principle through which time is experienced and regulated—past, present, and future ordered into a coherent cosmic flow.

What is the theological importance of this verse in a Vaishnava reading of the Vishnu Purana?

Even when addressed to Sūrya, the praise highlights a supreme, ordering sovereignty—often understood in Vaishnava theology as the divine power operating through cosmic deities to sustain dharma and the world.