Shloka 13
सामवेद–अथर्ववेदशाखाः, पुराणसंहिता, अष्टादशपुराणानि, विद्यास्थानानि
Sāma/Atharvan branches, Purāṇa compendium, 18 Purāṇas, knowledge taxonomy
सैन्धवान् मुञ्जकेशश् च ऽभिनद् वेदं द्विधा पुनः नक्षत्रकल्पो वेदानां संहितानां तथैव च
saindhavān muñjakeśaś ca 'bhinad vedaṃ dvidhā punaḥ nakṣatrakalpo vedānāṃ saṃhitānāṃ tathaiva ca
Saindhava and Muñjakeśa again divided the Veda into two; and Nakṣatrakalpa likewise made divisions of the Vedas, and so too of their Saṃhitās.
Sage Parāśara (speaking to Maitreya)
Speaker: Parasara
Topic: Proliferation of śākhās/recensions through successive divisions by named teachers.
Teaching: Historical
Quality: authoritative
Concept: The one Veda becomes many through pedagogical division, yet its authority remains one when guarded by disciplined recensional practice.
Vedantic Theme: Dharma
Application: Respect diversity of textual traditions while seeking their shared intent; avoid sectarian dismissal of alternate recensions.
Vishishtadvaita: Unity-in-diversity: many śākhās convey one ultimate purport (tātparya) oriented to the Supreme, echoing qualified non-dualism’s harmony of plurality within unity.
Key Kings: Saindhava, Muñjakeśa, Nakṣatrakalpa
FAQs
This verse presents Vedic knowledge as periodically reorganized by authoritative teachers, ensuring the Veda and its Saṃhitās remain preservable and teachable across changing eras and social conditions.
Parāśara frames continuity through a lineage of named transmitters who divide and systematize the Veda, indicating an intentional tradition of preservation rather than accidental survival.
Even when not named in the verse, the Vishnu Purana’s theology treats the ordered maintenance of Śruti and dharma as operating within Vishnu’s supreme governance of cosmic order and time.