Shloka 13

कुब्जानुग्रहः, धनुर्भङ्गः, कुवलयापीडवधः, मल्लयुद्धं, कंसवधः, स्तुतयः

Devanagari script

भक्तिच्छेदानुलिप्ताङ्गौ नीलपीताम्बरौ च तौ धनुःशालां ततो यातौ चित्रमाल्योपशोभितौ

Transliteration

bhakticchedānuliptāṅgau nīlapītāmbarau ca tau dhanuḥśālāṃ tato yātau citramālyopaśobhitau

Translation

Smeared upon their limbs with the marks of devotion, and clad in blue and yellow garments, the two then proceeded to the bow-hall, adorned with variegated garlands.

Word by Word

• भक्तिच्छेदानुलिप्ताङ्गौ: whose bodies were smeared with pieces of devotion (marks)
• भक्तिच्छेदानुलिप्ताङ्गौ: विशेषण (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: भक्ति (प्रातिपदिक) + छेद (प्रातिपदिक) + अनु-लिप् (धातु; √लिप् ‘to smear’) + अङ्ग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), द्विवचन; बहुव्रीहि-समास (‘ययोः अङ्गौ भक्तिच्छेदेन अनुलिप्ते’), विशेषण

• नीलपीताम्बरौ: wearing blue and yellow garments
• नीलपीताम्बरौ: विशेषण (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: नील (प्रातिपदिक) + पीत (प्रातिपदिक) + अम्बर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), द्विवचन; बहुव्रीहि (‘ययोः अम्बरे नीलपीते’), विशेषण

• च: and
• च: समुच्चय (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक निपात (conjunction)

• तौ: those two
• तौ: कर्ता (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), द्विवचन; सर्वनाम

• धनुःशालाम्: the bow-hall
• धनुःशालाम्: कर्म/गन्तव्य (Goal as object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: धनुस् (प्रातिपदिक) + शाला (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (‘धनुषः शाला’ = bow-hall)

• ततः: then/from there
• ततः: क्रियाविशेषण (Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb) स्थान/क्रम (‘thereupon/from there’)

• यातौ: went
• यातौ: क्रिया (Verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: या (धातु; √या ‘to go’)
• Form: क्त (भूतकृदन्त/Past participle used finitely), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), द्विवचन; ‘gone/went’

• चित्रमाल्योपशोभितौ: adorned with variegated garlands
• चित्रमाल्योपशोभितौ: विशेषण (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: चित्र (प्रातिपदिक) + माल्य (प्रातिपदिक) + उप-शोभ् (धातु; √शोभ् ‘to shine/adorn’)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), द्विवचन; बहुव्रीहि (‘यौ चित्रमाल्येन उपशोभितौ’), विशेषण

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Krishna and Balarama’s movement within Mathura leading to the bow-hall incident

Teaching: Historical

Quality: descriptive

Avatara Context

Avatara: Krishna

Purpose: To proceed toward the decisive confrontation in Mathura, displaying auspicious marks and splendor that signal divine protection before subduing adharma.

Leela: Loka-rakshana

Dharma Restored: Assurance of divine guardianship and the triumph of dharma over coercive power

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Krishna

Bhakti Type: Dasya

Characters & Entities

• Two unidentified figures (tau)
• Bow-hall (dhanuḥśālā)

FAQs

What is the significance of the dhanuḥśālā (bow-hall) in the Vishnu Purana?

In this verse it signals entry into a royal/warrior space where sovereignty and the protection of dharma are expressed through weapons—especially the bow, emblematic of kṣatriya authority.

How does Sage Parāśara present devotion (bhakti) within a dynastic narrative here?

Parāśara describes the characters as physically bearing devotional marks and anointments, implying that devotion is not merely inward but publicly embodied—even within courtly and martial settings.

What is the theological importance of blue and yellow garments in this context?

Blue and yellow are classic puranic colors of auspicious sovereignty and are strongly evocative of Viṣṇu’s iconography, subtly aligning royal action and order with the Supreme Lord’s sustaining power.