Shloka 21

चत्वारोऽाश्रमाः — ब्रह्मचर्यादि मोक्षाश्रमपर्यन्तम्

The Four Āśramas as a graded path to mokṣa

Devanagari script

देवताभ्यर्चनं होमः सर्वाभ्यागतपूजनम् भिक्षाबलिप्रदानं च शस्तम् अस्य नरेश्वर

Transliteration

devatābhyarcanaṃ homaḥ sarvābhyāgatapūjanam bhikṣābalipradānaṃ ca śastam asya nareśvara

Translation

O king of men, worship of the deities, homa into the sacred fire, honoring every arriving guest, and giving alms and bali-offerings—these are declared proper and praiseworthy duties for him.

Word by Word

• देवताभ्यर्चनम्: worship of deities
• देवताभ्यर्चनम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: देवता (प्रातिपदिक) + अभ्यर्चन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन (neuter, nominative/accusative singular); चतुर्थी-तत्पुरुष (worship to deities)

• होमः: fire-offering
• होमः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: होम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन (masculine, nominative singular)

• सर्वाभ्यागतपूजनम्: honouring all guests/arrivals
• सर्वाभ्यागतपूजनम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सर्व (प्रातिपदिक) + अभ्यागत (कृदन्त, क्त) + पूजन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन (neuter, nominative/accusative singular); तत्पुरुषसमास (determinative)

• भिक्षाबलिप्रदानम्: giving alms and offerings
• भिक्षाबलिप्रदानम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भिक्षा (प्रातिपदिक) + बलि (प्रातिपदिक) + प्रदान (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन (neuter, nominative/accusative singular); द्वन्द्व (भिक्षा-बलि) + तत्पुरुष (प्रदान)

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

• शस्तम्: commended, prescribed
• शस्तम्: Pradhana-visheshana (Predicate adjective/विधेय-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शस् (धातु) → शस्त (कृदन्त, क्त)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त; नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन (past passive participle; neuter nom/acc sg)

• अस्य: for him/of him
• अस्य: Sambandha (Possessor/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: इदम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी, एकवचन (genitive singular)

• नरेश्वर: O lord of men
• नरेश्वर: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नर (प्रातिपदिक) + ईश्वर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन, एकवचन (masculine, vocative singular); षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (in discourse to Maitreya; addressing a kingly ideal as 'nareśvara')

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Proper duties (kriyā) for the vānaprastha: worship, homa, hospitality, alms and bali

Teaching: Ethical

Quality: authoritative

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Ritual worship, fire-offerings, hospitality, and giving (bhikṣā/bali) purify life when performed as dharma rather than for gain.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Sanctify daily work through offerings (gratitude, charity, service to guests/strangers) and disciplined ritual or prayer.

Vishishtadvaita: Yajña and atithi-sevā are implicitly forms of Bhagavad-ārādhana: serving beings and devas as limbs of the Lord’s body (śarīra-śarīrī-bhāva).

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Hari

Bhakti Type: Dasya

Characters & Entities

• Devas
• Guests (Atithi)
• Kings (Nareśvara)

FAQs

What is the significance of honoring guests (atithi-pūjā) in the Vishnu Purana?

This verse treats welcoming every guest as a core dharmic act that sustains social harmony and religious merit, making hospitality part of the sacred order a righteous ruler should uphold.

How does Sage Parāśara explain righteous conduct for society in this context?

He lists practical duties—worship, homa, hospitality, alms, and bali—showing dharma as lived discipline, not mere theory, and as the foundation of stable kingship and communal well-being.

The theological importance of Lord Vishnu in this context?

Though not named here, these prescribed acts align human life with the cosmic order (ṛta/dharma) that the Vishnu Purana ultimately grounds in Vishnu as the supreme sustaining reality.