Shloka 16

Devanagari script

गवाम् एतत् कृतं वाक्यं तथान्यद् अपि मे शृणु यद् ब्रवीमि महाभाग भारावतरणेच्छया

Transliteration

gavām etat kṛtaṃ vākyaṃ tathānyad api me śṛṇu yad bravīmi mahābhāga bhārāvataraṇecchayā

Translation

This was spoken on behalf of the cattle; now hear something further from me as well. O greatly fortunate one, listen to what I declare with the intent of relieving the earth’s burden.

Word by Word

• gavām: of the cows
• gavām: Sambandha (Possessor/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: go (गो, प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; षष्ठी बहुवचन (Genitive plural)

• etat: this
• etat: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: etad (एतद्, सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा/द्वितीया एकवचन (Nom./Acc. singular); अत्र ‘वाक्यम्’ विशेषणम्

• kṛtam: made/uttered
• kṛtam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: kṛta (कृत, कृदन्त) < √kṛ (कृ)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (past passive participle); नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा/द्वितीया एकवचन; ‘कृतं वाक्यम्’ = ‘made/uttered statement’

• vākyam: statement/words
• vākyam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vākya (वाक्य, प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा/द्वितीया एकवचन (Nom./Acc. singular)

• tathā: also/likewise
• tathā: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tathā (तथा, अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चय/तुल्यतार्थक (and also/likewise)

• anyat: another (thing)
• anyat: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: anya (अन्य, प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा/द्वितीया एकवचन (Nom./Acc. singular)

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

• me: my/of me
• me: Sambandha (Possessor/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mad (अस्मद्, सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी एकवचन (Genitive singular) ‘मम’ (of me)

• śṛṇu: hear/listen
• śṛṇu: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √śru (श्रु)
• Form: लोट् (Imperative); मध्यमपुरुष; एकवचन; परस्मैपद (2nd person singular, imperative)

• yat: that which
• yat: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (यद्, सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया एकवचन (Accusative singular) — ‘that which’ (object of ‘hear’)

• bravīmi: I say
• bravīmi: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √brū (ब्रू)
• Form: लट् (Present); उत्तमपुरुष; एकवचन; परस्मैपद (1st person singular, present)

• mahābhāga: O fortunate one
• mahābhāga: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā-bhāga (महाभाग, प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; सम्बोधन एकवचन (Vocative singular); समासः—कर्मधारयः (महान् भागः यस्य)

• bhāra-avataraṇa-icchayā: with the wish to relieve the burden
• bhāra-avataraṇa-icchayā: Hetu (Motive/हेतु)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhāra (भार, प्रातिपदिक) + avataraṇa (अवतरण, प्रातिपदिक) + icchā (इच्छा, प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; तृतीया एकवचन (Instrumental singular); समासः—तत्पुरुषः ‘भारावतरणेच्छया’ = ‘with the desire for the descent/removal of the burden’

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (continuing the narration to Maitreya)

Avatara Context

Avatara: Krishna

Purpose: He acts to lighten the earth’s burden by orchestrating events leading to the removal of adharmic forces.

Leela: Dharma-upadesa

Dharma Restored: Restoration of balance through divinely guided historical correction

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Divine action in history aims at dharmic rebalancing when the earth is oppressed by adharma.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Support justice and protection of the vulnerable; see dharma as the measure of legitimate power and social order.

Vishishtadvaita: Bhū (earth) is a real, valued mode of the Lord; ‘burden’ signifies disharmony within his body-cosmos that he compassionately rectifies.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Krishna

Lakshmi Presence: Bhumi

Characters & Entities

• Cows (Gavām)
• Earth (implied by 'bhāra'—the burden upon the earth)

FAQs

What is the significance of 'bhārāvataraṇa' (removal of the Earth's burden) in the Vishnu Purana?

It signals a cosmic turning point where divine action is invoked to restore balance—when dharma declines and the world becomes 'overburdened,' the Supreme order moves toward correction.

How does Sage Parāśara frame the narrative after describing the cows’ statement?

He treats it as a prelude and then continues with additional disclosure, indicating that the petition (here attributed to the cattle) leads into a broader explanation of the intended cosmic remedy.

What is the theological importance of Vishnu in this context?

Even when not named in the verse, the stated intent—restoring the world by removing its burden—reflects Vishnu’s role as the sovereign preserver whose will manifests as corrective intervention for sustaining dharma.