Shloka 37

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

Devanagari script

मया संसारचक्रे ऽस्मिन् भ्रमता भगवन् सदा तापत्रयाभिभूतेन न प्राप्ता निर्वृतिः क्वचित्

Transliteration

mayā saṃsāracakre 'smin bhramatā bhagavan sadā tāpatrayābhibhūtena na prāptā nirvṛtiḥ kvacit

Translation

O Blessed Lord, as I have wandered ceaselessly within this revolving wheel of saṃsāra, crushed by the threefold afflictions, I have never—at any time—found nirvṛti, true peace and release.

Word by Word

• मया: by me
• मया: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: उत्तमपुरुष-सर्वनाम, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन

• संसारचक्रे: in the wheel of saṃsāra
• संसारचक्रे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: संसार + चक्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (संसारस्य चक्रम्)

• अस्मिन्: in this
• अस्मिन्: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: इदम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसक, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन; निर्देश (demonstrative)

• भ्रमता: while wandering
• भ्रमता: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: भ्रम् (धातु) + शतृ (वर्तमान कृदन्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन; शतृ-प्रत्ययान्त वर्तमान कृदन्त (present participle)

• भगवन्: O Lord
• भगवन्: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भगवत् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th/Vocative), एकवचन

• सदा: always
• सदा: Kriya-viseshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: सदा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; कालवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (adverb of time)

• तापत्रयाभिभूतेन: overwhelmed by the threefold suffering
• तापत्रयाभिभूतेन: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ताप + त्रय + अभि-भूत (भू धातु + क्त; कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (तापत्रयेन अभिभूतः)

• न: not
• न: Sambandha/Avyaya (Negator)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निषेध (negation particle)

• प्राप्ता: was attained
• प्राप्ता: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्र-आप् (धातु) + क्त; प्राप्त (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (PPP) used predicatively with implied ‘अभूत्/अस्ति’

• निर्वृतिः: peace, cessation
• निर्वृतिः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: निर्वृति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• क्वचित्: ever, anywhere
• क्वचित्: Kriya-viseshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: क्वचित् (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देश/कालवाचक (indefinite adverb: ‘ever/anywhere’)

Speaker

Maitreya (addressing Sage Parāśara as 'Bhagavan')

Avatara Context

Avatara: Krishna

Purpose: As Kṛṣṇa, the Lord is approached as the liberator who can end the devotee’s wandering in saṃsāra and grant true peace beyond the threefold afflictions.

Leela: Moksha-dana

Dharma Restored: Release (nirvṛti) through surrender and divine grace.

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: The jīva, wandering in saṃsāra, is afflicted by the threefold sufferings and finds no peace without turning to the Lord for liberation.

Vedantic Theme: Moksha

Application: Name the sources of distress (inner, worldly, cosmic), then practice daily śaraṇāgati—prayer, remembrance, and ethical living—as a lived request for grace.

Vishishtadvaita: Highlights the jīva’s dependence and suffering in bondage and the need for Bhagavān’s saving grace, central to prapatti-oriented Viśiṣṭādvaita devotion.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Vasudeva

Bhakti Type: Dasya

Characters & Entities

• Maitreya
• Parāśara
• Saṃsāra
• Tāpatraya (threefold miseries)

FAQs

What is the significance of the 'threefold afflictions' (tāpatraya) in the Vishnu Purana?

This verse frames human life as pervaded by suffering from inner causes, outer beings, and cosmic/natural forces, motivating the search for a higher refuge and liberating knowledge.

How does Sage Parāśara address the problem of saṃsāra in his teachings to Maitreya?

Maitreya’s confession of unrelieved distress sets up Parāśara’s instruction: explaining the cosmic order and pointing toward Vishnu-centered realization as the means to transcend the cycle.

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

By calling upon 'Bhagavan,' the verse implies that lasting peace is not found within saṃsāra itself but in turning to the Supreme Lord—Vishnu—as the ultimate ground and deliverer.