Shloka 30

वैष्णवीमायावितानम्, उग्रसेनाभिषेकः, सुधर्मासभा, सांदीपनिगमनम्, पाञ्चजन्य-प्राप्तिः, गुरुदक्षिणा

Devanagari script

तं बालं यातनासंस्थं यथापूर्वशरीरिणम् पित्रे प्रदत्तवान् कृष्णो बलश् च बलिनां वरः

Transliteration

taṃ bālaṃ yātanāsaṃsthaṃ yathāpūrvaśarīriṇam pitre pradattavān kṛṣṇo balaś ca balināṃ varaḥ

Translation

Then Kṛṣṇa—together with Bala, foremost among the mighty—restored that child who had been held in torment to his former bodily state, and delivered him back to his father.

Word by Word

• तम्: that (boy)
• तम्: Karma (कर्म/Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• बालम्: the child
• बालम्: Karma (कर्म/Apposition)
• Type: Noun
• Root: बाल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• यातनासंस्थम्: placed in torment/punishment
• यातनासंस्थम्: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: यातना + संस्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; सप्तमी/तत्पुरुषार्थ (यातनायां संस्थः = situated in torment)

• यथापूर्वशरीरिणम्: having his former body as before
• यथापूर्वशरीरिणम्: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: यथा (अव्यय) + पूर्व + शरीरिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; अव्ययीभाव (यथापूर्वम्) + ‘शरीरिन्’ (possessing a body)

• पित्रे: to the father
• पित्रे: Sampradana (सम्प्रदान/Recipient)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पितृ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी-विभक्ति (Dative/4th), एकवचन

• प्रदत्तवान्: gave/handed over
• प्रदत्तवान्: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्र + दा (धातु) + क्तवत् (कृदन्त-प्रत्यय)
• Form: क्तवत्-कृदन्त (past active participle used as finite predicate), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; कर्तरि प्रयोगः (he gave)

• कृष्णः: Krishna
• कृष्णः: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कृष्ण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• बलः: Bala (Balarama)
• बलः: Karta (कर्ता/Co-subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: बल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; बलरामस्य नाम (Bala)

• च: and
• च: Connector (समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चय

• बलिनाम्: of the strong
• बलिनाम्: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: बलिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• वरः: the best/excellent one
• वरः: Karta (कर्ता/Predicate nominative to बलः)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषणार्थे (best among)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)

Avatara Context

Avatara: Krishna

Purpose: Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma restore the child from torment to his former bodily state and return him to his father, exemplifying the Lord’s protective compassion.

Leela: Moksha-dana

Dharma Restored: Restoration of life and familial order; relief from suffering and re-establishment of rightful human bonds

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: The Lord’s protection is not merely punitive toward evil but restorative toward the afflicted, returning beings to wholeness and rightful order.

Vedantic Theme: Moksha

Application: In suffering, practice surrender (śaraṇāgati) and compassionate action: aid those in distress and trust in a higher restorative grace.

Vishishtadvaita: Grace operates within embodied life—God restores the jīva’s embodied condition without denying the reality of body/world, aligning with Viśiṣṭādvaita’s real, divinely sustained cosmos.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Krishna

Bhakti Type: Dasya

Characters & Entities

• Krishna
• Balarama
• Father (unnamed in this verse)
• Child (unnamed in this verse)

FAQs

What is the significance of Krishna restoring the child to his former body in the Vishnu Purana?

It highlights divine mastery over embodied existence—Krishna not only rescues from suffering but can restore the prior state of life and form, reinforcing Vishnu’s protective sovereignty in the world.

How does Sage Parāśara explain divine intervention in dynastic history?

Parāśara frames such events as dharma-protecting acts within lineage narratives, where avatāras intervene to correct disorder and safeguard families, rulers, and social stability.

What is the theological importance of Krishna and Balarama being named together here?

Their joint mention emphasizes coordinated divine power: Krishna as the supreme protector and Bala as ‘foremost of the strong,’ together manifesting Vishnu’s sustaining force within historical and genealogical accounts.