Shloka 18

केशीवधः तथा ‘केशव’ नामप्रसिद्धिः

Devanagari script

अथाहान्तरितो विप्रो नारदो जलदे स्थितः केशिनं निहतं दृष्ट्वा हर्षनिर्भरमानसः

Transliteration

athāhāntarito vipro nārado jalade sthitaḥ keśinaṃ nihataṃ dṛṣṭvā harṣanirbharamānasaḥ

Translation

Then, without delay, the brāhmaṇa sage Nārada, stationed amid the clouds, beheld Keśin slain, and his heart overflowed with joy.

Word by Word

• अथ: then
• अथ: Discourse marker (अव्यय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अथ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; आरम्भ/अनन्तरार्थक (then/now)

• आह: said
• आह: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √अह्/√ब्रू (धातु; ‘to say’) लिट्/परस्मैपद
• Form: लकारः: लिट् (Perfect; past sense), परस्मैपदम्; पुरुषः: प्रथम (3rd), वचनम्: एकवचन

• अन्तरितः: concealed
• अन्तरितः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अन्तरित (कृदन्त; √धृ/√इ? ‘to cover/conceal’ अन्तर्-उपसर्गवत् + क्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त—‘hidden/veiled’

• विप्रः: the brahmin
• विप्रः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विप्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• नारदः: Nārada
• नारदः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नारद (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; विशेष्य-नाम

• जलदे: in a cloud
• जलदे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: जलद (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), एकवचन

• स्थितः: standing, situated
• स्थितः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: स्थित (कृदन्त; √स्था ‘to stand’ क्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त—qualifying Nārada

• केशिनम्: Keśin
• केशिनम्: Karman (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: केशिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• निहतम्: slain
• निहतम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: निहत (कृदन्त; √हन् ‘to kill’ नि- + क्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त—qualifying ‘केशिनम्’

• दृष्ट्वा: having seen
• दृष्ट्वा: Purvakala-kriya (Prior action/पूर्वकालक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √दृश् (धातु) क्त्वा (ल्यप्)
• Form: अव्ययभावे कृदन्तः; क्त्वान्त (gerund) — ‘having seen’

• हर्षनिर्भरमानसः: with a mind full of joy
• हर्षनिर्भरमानसः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: हर्ष (प्रातिपदिक) + निर्भर (प्रातिपदिक) + मानस (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; बहुव्रीहिः—‘हर्षेण निर्भरं मानसं यस्य सः’ (whose mind is filled with joy)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Nārada’s appearance from the clouds and his joy upon seeing Keśin slain.

Teaching: Historical

Quality: revealing

Cosmological Context

Manvantara: Vaivasvata

Cosmic Hierarchy: Lokas

Avatara Context

Avatara: Krishna

Purpose: To protect Vraja by destroying Keśin, prompting even Nārada to rejoice and further the divine narrative.

Leela: Loka-rakshana

Dharma Restored: Cosmic order upheld through the removal of asuric agents opposing the Lord’s mission.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Krishna

Bhakti Type: Shanta

Characters & Entities

• Narada
• Kesin
• Krishna (implied as the slayer)

FAQs

What is the significance of Nārada witnessing Keśin’s death in the Vishnu Purana?

It frames Krishna’s act as a cosmic, dharma-restoring event observed and affirmed by a divine rishi, not merely a local victory.

How does Sage Parāśara present Krishna’s role in this episode?

Through concise narrative markers—Keśin is ‘slain’ and Nārada rejoices—Parāśara signals Krishna’s effortless supremacy and the inevitable defeat of adharma.

What is the theological importance of Vishnu in this context?

Vishnu, manifest as Krishna, is implied as the supreme protector whose presence reorders the world; the sage’s joy reflects recognition of that higher sovereignty.