Shloka 26

Kālayavana’s Rise, Dvārakā’s Founding, and Muchukunda’s Awakening (Śaraṇāgati & Brahman-Stuti)

Devanagari script

पुरा गर्गेण कथितम् अष्टाविंशतिमे युगे द्वापरान्ते हरेर् जन्म यदोर् वंशे भविष्यति

Transliteration

purā gargeṇa kathitam aṣṭāviṃśatime yuge dvāparānte harer janma yador vaṃśe bhaviṣyati

Translation

Long ago, Garga foretold that in the twenty-eighth age-cycle—at the close of the Dvāpara—Hari Himself would take birth within the lineage of Yadu.

Word by Word

• purā: formerly
• purā: Kriya-vishesana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: purā (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक अव्यय (formerly/once)

• gargeṇa: by Garga
• gargeṇa: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: garga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd), एकवचन

• kathitam: was told
• kathitam: Kriya (Predicative/क्रिया-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: kathita (कृदन्त; √kath/कथ्)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; भूतकृदन्त (क्त), ‘told/said’

• aṣṭāviṃśatime: in the twenty-eighth
• aṣṭāviṃśatime: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: aṣṭā-viṃśati-ma (प्रातिपदिक; aṣṭā + viṃśati + -ma)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), एकवचन; द्विगु-समासः (numeral compound) + क्रमवाचक प्रत्यय (-ma): ‘in the twenty-eighth’

• yuge: age (yuga)
• yuge: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yuga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), एकवचन

• dvāpara-ante: at the end of Dvāpara
• dvāpara-ante: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dvāpara-anta (प्रातिपदिक; dvāpara + anta)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), एकवचन; सप्तमी-तत्पुरुषः/उपपद-समासभावः—‘dvāparasya ante’ (at the end of Dvāpara)

• hareḥ: of Hari
• hareḥ: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: hari (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th), एकवचन

• janma: birth
• janma: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: janman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• yadoḥ: of Yadu
• yadoḥ: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yadu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th), एकवचन

• vaṃśe: in the lineage
• vaṃśe: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vaṃśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), एकवचन

• bhaviṣyati: will be/will occur
• bhaviṣyati: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √bhū/भू (धातु)
• Form: लृट् (Future), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)

Avatara Context

Avatara: Krishna

Purpose: To descend as Hari at the end of Dvāpara in the Yadu lineage for world-protection and the relief of the earth’s burden.

Leela: Loka-rakshana

Dharma Restored: Yuga-transition stabilization and restoration of dharma through the Lord’s avatāra.

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: The Lord’s avatāra is coordinated with yuga-cycles, revealing a purposeful divine governance of time and history.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Read history through a dharmic lens: align personal life with yuga-dharma via devotion, restraint, and service.

Vishishtadvaita: Hari’s transcendence includes lordship over kāla (time), yet He truly enters lineage and history—immanence without loss of supremacy.

Dynasty & Genealogy

Vamsha: Chandra

Key Kings: Yadu, Garga

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Hari

Vyuha Form: Vasudeva

Jagat Karana: Yes

Characters & Entities

• Garga
• Hari (Vishnu)
• Yadu
• Yadu Vamsha (Yādava lineage)
• Dvapara Yuga

FAQs

What is the significance of Garga’s prophecy in the Vishnu Purana?

It anchors Krishna/Hari’s incarnation in a specific yuga-juncture (the end of Dvāpara) and a specific royal lineage (Yadu), linking cosmic time with historical genealogy.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the timing of divine incarnation here?

Through yuga-based chronology: Parāśara cites an earlier authoritative statement (Garga’s) to show that Hari’s descent is coordinated with the turning-point between Dvāpara and the coming Kali age.

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

Hari is presented as the sovereign Supreme who freely assumes birth for dharma’s restoration, making genealogy and yuga-time instruments of divine purpose rather than mere history.