Shloka 48

कुब्जानुग्रहः, धनुर्भङ्गः, कुवलयापीडवधः, मल्लयुद्धं, कंसवधः, स्तुतयः

Devanagari script

क्व यौवनोन्मुखीभूतसुकुमारतनुर् हरिः क्व वज्रकठिनाभोगशरीरो ऽयं महासुरः

Transliteration

kva yauvanonmukhībhūtasukumāratanur hariḥ kva vajrakaṭhinābhogaśarīro 'yaṃ mahāsuraḥ

Translation

How could Hari—whose tender body has only just turned toward youth—be compared with this great Asura, whose massive frame is hard and dense like a thunderbolt vajra?

Word by Word

• क्व: where
• क्व: Prashna (Interrogative/प्रश्न)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: क्व (अव्यय)
• Form: प्रश्नार्थक-देशवाचक-अव्यय — interrogative adverb ‘where?’

• यौवनोन्मुखीभूतसुकुमारतनुः: having a tender body just turning toward youth
• यौवनोन्मुखीभूतसुकुमारतनुः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: यौवन + उन्मुखीभूत + सुकुमार + तनु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1/कर्ता), एकवचन — Nominative singular; बहुपद-तत्पुरुषः (यौवने उन्मुखीभूतः) + कर्मधारयः (सुकुमारः तनुः यस्य) समास-समुच्चयः

• हरिः: Hari (Krishna)
• हरिः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: हरि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1/कर्ता), एकवचन — Nominative singular

• क्व: where
• क्व: Prashna (Interrogative/प्रश्न)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: क्व (अव्यय)
• Form: प्रश्नार्थक-देशवाचक-अव्यय — interrogative adverb

• वज्रकठिनाभोगशरीरः: having a body with hard, massive limbs like a thunderbolt
• वज्रकठिनाभोगशरीरः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वज्र + कठिन + आभोग + शरीर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1/कर्ता), एकवचन — Nominative singular; बहुपद-तत्पुरुषः/कर्मधारय-समासः (वज्रवत् कठिनः; आभोगयुक्तं शरीरम्)

• अयम्: this
• अयम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: इदम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1/कर्ता), एकवचन — Nominative singular

• महासुरः: great demon
• महासुरः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महा + असुर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1/कर्ता), एकवचन — Nominative singular; कर्मधारयः (महान् असुरः)

Speaker

Spectators/people in the wrestling arena (Mathura), as narrated by Sage Parāśara to Maitreya

Avatara Context

Avatara: Krishna

Purpose: Krishna accepts the unequal match to expose Kaṃsa’s adharma and protect the people by defeating the daitya-aligned champions.

Leela: Loka-rakshana

Dharma Restored: Protection of the righteous and the principle that tyranny cannot hide behind ‘sport’ or spectacle.

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Bhagavān may appear vulnerable in human-like form, yet His power is not limited by the body’s seeming fragility.

Vedantic Theme: Brahman

Application: Do not judge spiritual strength by external appearance; cultivate trust in the Lord’s protective capacity and in inner resilience.

Vishishtadvaita: The divine body is real and gracious (not illusory): the transcendent Hari manifests a tender form while retaining sovereign potency.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Hari

Bhakti Type: Shanta

Characters & Entities

• Hari (Vishnu/Krishna)

FAQs

What is the significance of contrasting Krishna’s tender youth with a demon’s thunderbolt-like body in the Vishnu Purana?

It heightens the līlā: the Lord appears gentle and human-like, yet effortlessly overcomes asuric might, revealing divine sovereignty beneath apparent softness.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the Lord’s power in a scene where Krishna looks physically delicate?

Through the narrated reactions of onlookers, Parāśara shows that Krishna’s form may seem youthful and tender, but Hari’s true nature is supreme and unconstrained by material measures of strength.

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

Hari is presented as the Supreme Reality who enters history in a pleasing, approachable form, yet remains the decisive ruler of cosmic order, subduing demonic force without dependence on worldly power.