Shloka 15

देवकी-विवाहः, आकाशवाणी, भूरभारावतरण-याचना, क्षीराब्धि-स्तुति, केशावतार-नियोजनम्

Devanagari script

प्रजापतिपतिर् ब्रह्मा पूर्वेषाम् अपि पूर्वजः कलाकाष्ठानिमेषात्मा कालश् चाव्यक्तमूर्तिमान्

Transliteration

prajāpatipatir brahmā pūrveṣām api pūrvajaḥ kalākāṣṭhānimeṣātmā kālaś cāvyaktamūrtimān

Translation

Brahmā—lord of the Prajāpatis and progenitor even of the earliest progenitors—is Time itself: the essence of kalā, kāṣṭhā, and nimeṣa, Time whose form is unmanifest.

Word by Word

• प्रजापति-पतिः: lord of the Prajāpatis
• प्रजापति-पतिः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: प्रजापति + पति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (कर्ता), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (प्रजापतीनां पतिः)

• ब्रह्मा: Brahmā
• ब्रह्मा: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्रह्मन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• पूर्वेषाम्: of the former/earlier ones
• पूर्वेषाम्: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पूर्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (सम्बन्ध), बहुवचन

• अपि: also/even
• अपि: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अप्यर्थ (also/even)

• पूर्वजः: the ancestor/one born before
• पूर्वजः: Pradhana (Predicate/विधेय)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पूर्वज (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; विधेय

• कला-काष्ठा-निमेष-आत्मा: whose essence is (time-units) kalā, kāṣṭhā, and nimeṣa
• कला-काष्ठा-निमेष-आत्मा: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कला + काष्ठा + निमेष + आत्मन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; बहुपद-तत्पुरुषः (कला-काष्ठा-निमेषाः यस्य आत्मा/स्वरूपम्)

• कालः: Time
• कालः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: काल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

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

• अव्यक्त-मूर्तिमान्: having an unmanifest form
• अव्यक्त-मूर्तिमान्: Karta (Subject-qualifier/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अव्यक्त + मूर्तिमत् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; विशेषणम् (कालः); तत्पुरुषः (अव्यक्ता मूर्तिः यस्य)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (teaching Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Cosmic governance: Brahmā’s role and the nature of Time as the measurer of becoming

Teaching: Cosmological

Quality: authoritative

Cosmological Context

Creation Stage: Kalpa

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Brahmā functions as the lord of progenitors within the cosmos, identified with Time that measures manifestation through subtle units, even while Time’s form is unmanifest.

Vedantic Theme: Maya

Application: Cultivate awareness of time’s governing power—use it for disciplined practice (sādhana) rather than distraction.

Vishishtadvaita: Cosmic time and administration are real modes within the Lord’s ordered universe; ‘unmanifest’ here denotes subtlety, not unreality, aligning with qualified non-dual realism.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Para-Brahman

Characters & Entities

• Brahmā
• Kāla (Time)
• Avyakta (the Unmanifest)

FAQs

What is the significance of Kāla (Time) being described as unmanifest in the Vishnu Purana?

It presents Time as a subtle, unseen regulator—beyond sensory form—yet the power by which all change, measurement, and cosmic order proceed.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the structure of time in this context?

He links Time to concrete units like nimeṣa, kāṣṭhā, and kalā, showing that cosmic processes are governed through precise gradations of temporality.

What is the theological importance of this verse for Vaishnava cosmology?

By portraying sovereignty through Kāla, the text supports the idea that the universe is ordered by a supreme principle—ultimately grounded in the Vishnu-centric vision of cosmic governance.