Shloka 5

शरद्वर्णनं, योगोपमा, तथा गोवर्धन-यज्ञप्रवर्तनम्

Devanagari script

शरत्सूर्यांशुतप्तानि ययुः शोषं सरांसि च बह्वालम्बिममत्वेन हृदयानीव देहिनाम्

Transliteration

śaratsūryāṃśutaptāni yayuḥ śoṣaṃ sarāṃsi ca bahvālambimamatvena hṛdayānīva dehinām

Translation

Scorched by the autumn sun’s rays, the lakes and pools were dried up—like the hearts of embodied beings, which wither when they cling to many supports through possessive attachment.

Word by Word

• शरत्-सूर्य-अंशु-तप्तानि: heated by the autumn sun’s rays
• शरत्-सूर्य-अंशु-तप्तानि: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शरत् (प्रातिपदिक) + सूर्य (प्रातिपदिक) + अंशु (प्रातिपदिक) + तप्त (कृदन्त, √तप्)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (neuter), प्रथमा विभक्ति (Nominative), बहुवचन (plural); भूतकृदन्त ‘तप्त’ = heated; ‘sharat-sun-ray-heated’

• ययुः: they went; they came to
• ययुः: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: या (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), परस्मैपदम्, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), बहुवचन (plural)

• शोषम्: drying up; desiccation
• शोषम्: Gati/Karma (गति/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शोष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (masculine), द्वितीया विभक्ति (Accusative), एकवचन (singular)

• सरांसि: lakes; ponds
• सरांसि: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सरस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (neuter), प्रथमा विभक्ति (Nominative), बहुवचन (plural)

• च: and
• च: Samuccaya (समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (conjunction)

• बहु-आलम्बि-ममत्वेन: through possessiveness that clings to many supports
• बहु-आलम्बि-ममत्वेन: Karana/Hetu (करण/हेतु)
• Type: Noun
• Root: बहु (प्रातिपदिक) + आलम्बिन् (प्रातिपदिक) + ममत्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (neuter), तृतीया विभक्ति (Instrumental), एकवचन (singular); ‘mamatva’ qualified by ‘bahvālambi’ = depending on many supports

• हृदयानि: hearts
• हृदयानि: Upamana (उपमान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: हृदय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (neuter), प्रथमा विभक्ति (Nominative), बहुवचन (plural)

• इव: like
• इव: Upamana-marker (उपमानसूचक)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इव (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (upamā particle)

• देहिनाम्: of embodied beings
• देहिनाम्: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: देहिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (masculine), षष्ठी विभक्ति (Genitive), बहुवचन (plural)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Clinging to many external supports through mamatva dries the heart, just as autumn sun dries lakes.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Reduce scattered dependencies (status, possessions, approval) by prioritizing one stable refuge—Bhagavān and sādhana—while simplifying commitments.

Vishishtadvaita: True āśraya is Nārāyaṇa; when the jīva seeks multiple finite supports, its natural dependence (paratantratā) becomes painful fragmentation.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Krishna

Bhakti Type: Shanta

Characters & Entities

• Sun (Sūrya)
• Embodied beings (dehin)

FAQs

What is the significance of autumn imagery in the Vishnu Purana?

Here autumn becomes a moral mirror: just as the sun dries up waters, possessive attachment to many supports dries up the heart—pointing to the need for detachment and steadiness.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the problem of mamatva ("mine-ness")?

By comparing it to desiccation: when the heart depends on many external props with possessiveness, it loses its inner freshness and resilience, becoming spiritually “dry.”

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

The verse implicitly contrasts unstable worldly supports with the higher ideal of anchoring oneself in the Supreme Reality—Vishnu—whose sovereignty and order sustain the cosmos beyond seasonal change.