Shloka 38

गोवर्धनोत्तरविस्मयः, रासलीलाप्रसङ्गः, तथा सर्वव्याप्तिवेदान्तोपदेशः

Devanagari script

हस्तसंस्पर्शमात्रेण धूर्तेनैषा विमानिता नैराश्यान् मन्दगामिन्या निवृत्तं लक्ष्यते पदम्

Transliteration

hastasaṃsparśamātreṇa dhūrtenaiṣā vimānitā nairāśyān mandagāminyā nivṛttaṃ lakṣyate padam

Translation

By the mere touch of the hand, that crafty man dishonoured her; and then, as hope ebbed away and her steps grew slow with despair, her course turned back—her retreat became plainly visible.

Word by Word

• हस्त: of the hand
• हस्त: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: हस्त (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/षष्ठी), एकवचन — in compound relation

• संस्पर्श: of the touch/contact
• संस्पर्श: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: संस्पर्श (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/षष्ठी), एकवचन — in compound relation

• मात्रेण: by mere (measure)
• मात्रेण: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मात्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), एकवचन — instrumental singular

• धूर्तेन: by the rogue
• धूर्तेन: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: धूर्त (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), एकवचन — instrumental singular

• एषा: this (woman)
• एषा: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: एतद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन — pronoun

• विमानिता: insulted, dishonoured
• विमानिता: Karta (Subject-complement/कर्तृसम्बन्ध)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वि√मान् (धातु) → विमानित (कृदन्त, क्त)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन — past passive participle; predicate adjective

• नैराश्यात्: from despair
• नैराश्यात्: Apadana (Source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नैराश्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th/पञ्चमी), एकवचन — ablative singular

• मन्द: slow
• मन्द: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: मन्द (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), एकवचन — adjective to gāminyā

• गामिन्या: by the (one) walking
• गामिन्या: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गामिनी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), एकवचन — instrumental singular

• निवृत्तम्: turned back, stopped
• निवृत्तम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: नि√वृत् (धातु) → निवृत्त (कृदन्त, क्त)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन — past passive participle; predicate adjective

• लक्ष्यते: is perceived
• लक्ष्यते: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √लक्ष् (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), कर्मणि प्रयोग (Passive), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन — is seen

• पदम्: the footprint/step
• पदम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पद (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन — here as nominative subject of passive

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya; verse describes events within the embedded story)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: How the gopīs’ emotions shift through Kṛṣṇa’s concealment and teasing.

Teaching: Devotional

Quality: revealing

Avatara Context

Avatara: Krishna

Purpose: Kṛṣṇa enacts līlā that intensifies longing (viraha) so that devotion ripens from contact to remembrance.

Leela: Madhurya

Dharma Restored: The supremacy of inner fidelity (bhāva) over external contact; devotion persists even amid dishonour and despair.

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: External touch without true mutuality can deepen the devotee’s dependence on inner remembrance rather than sensory assurance.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: When spiritual discouragement arises, redirect from seeking ‘signs’ to steady practice—japa, kīrtana, and ethical steadiness.

Vishishtadvaita: Bhakti is a real mode of the self’s relationship to the real Lord; even pain refines the soul’s orientation toward him.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Krishna

Bhakti Type: Madhurya

FAQs

What is the significance of despair (nairāśya) in this Vishnu Purana verse?

It signals the immediate inner collapse caused by dishonour—despair slows action and visibly reverses one’s course, illustrating moral injury as a turning point in the narrative.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the consequences of deceitful conduct here?

By depicting how a single improper act (mere touch) produces humiliation and withdrawal, the narration shows how adharma quickly disturbs social order and personal resolve.

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

Even when Vishnu is not named, the Purana’s moral universe assumes his sovereignty: dharma sustains order, and violations of it generate suffering—supporting the text’s Vaishnava vision of a governed cosmos.