Shloka 75

कुब्जानुग्रहः, धनुर्भङ्गः, कुवलयापीडवधः, मल्लयुद्धं, कंसवधः, स्तुतयः

Devanagari script

निःशेषजगदाधारगुरुणा पततोपरि कृष्णेन त्याजितः प्राणान् उग्रसेनात्मजो नृपः

Transliteration

niḥśeṣajagadādhāraguruṇā patatopari kṛṣṇena tyājitaḥ prāṇān ugrasenātmajo nṛpaḥ

Translation

Struck down from above by Kṛṣṇa—mighty support of the entire universe—the king Kaṃsa, son of Ugrasena, relinquished his life-breath.

Word by Word

• निःशेषजगदाधारगुरुणा: by the heavy support of the entire world (i.e., by the world-supporting heavy one)
• निःशेषजगदाधारगुरुणा: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: निःशेष + जगत् + आधार + गुरु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: बहुपद-तत्पुरुष-समास (विशेषणार्थ): ‘निःशेषस्य जगतः आधारः (यः) गुरु(ः)’; पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/करण), एकवचन

• पतत्: falling
• पतत्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पत् (धातु √पत्) (कृदन्त)
• Form: वर्तमानकृदन्त (शतृ), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; ‘falling’ (कृष्णं विशेषयति)

• उपरि: upon
• उपरि: Deshadhikarana (Locative sense/देशाधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: उपरि (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (स्थानवाचक): ‘upon/over’

• कृष्णेन: by Krishna
• कृष्णेन: Karana (Instrument/Agent-in-passive/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कृष्ण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/करण), एकवचन

• त्याजितः: was made to give up
• त्याजितः: Kriya (Passive predicate/कर्मणि-क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: त्यज् (धातु √त्यज्) (णिच् causative) (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त/PPP), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; कर्मणि प्रयोग: ‘was caused to abandon/was deprived of’

• प्राणान्: life-breaths; life
• प्राणान्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: प्राण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), बहुवचन

• उग्रसेनात्मजः: the son of Ugrasena
• उग्रसेनात्मजः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: उग्रसेन + आत्मज (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: ‘उग्रसेनस्य आत्मजः’ = son of Ugrasena; पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन

• नृपः: the king
• नृपः: Karta (Apposition/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नृप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन; अप्पोज़िशन to उग्रसेनात्मजः

Speaker

Sage Parasara (narrating to Maitreya)

Avatara Context

Avatara: Krishna

Purpose: To destroy Kaṃsa as a burden upon the earth and thereby secure the conditions for dharma and the Lord’s devotees to flourish.

Leela: Yuddha

Dharma Restored: Ending terror and restoring righteous governance under Ugrasena’s line.

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: The personal Kṛṣṇa who acts in history is simultaneously the cosmic ground supporting all worlds, so devotion to Him is devotion to the supreme cause.

Vedantic Theme: Brahman

Application: Hold together reverence for God’s transcendence with trust in His practical intervention during injustice.

Vishishtadvaita: Kṛṣṇa is both transcendent support of the jagat and immanently present in līlā—one Lord with real attributes and relations.

Dynasty & Genealogy

Vamsha: Chandra

Key Kings: Ugrasena, Kaṃsa

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Krishna

Jagat Karana: Yes

Characters & Entities

• Krishna
• Ugrasena
• Kamsa (implied as Ugrasena’s son)

FAQs

What is the significance of describing Krishna as the support of the entire universe in the Vishnu Purana?

It frames the historical event (the death of a tyrant king) as an act of the Supreme Reality: Krishna is not merely a hero, but the cosmic ground (jagad-ādhāra) whose will restores dharma.

How does Sage Parasara explain the fall of oppressive rulers in this narrative?

Parasara presents it as a dharmic turning-point: when adharma peaks, Vishnu’s avatara acts decisively, ending tyranny and re-establishing rightful order—here, by removing Ugrasena’s son (Kamsa).

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

The verse emphasizes Vishnu-in-Krishna as supreme and sovereign: the same Lord who bears the universe also governs history, and His lila becomes the means by which cosmic and social order are aligned.