Shloka 38

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

Devanagari script

दुःखान्य् एव सुखानीति मृगतृष्णाजलाशया मया नाथ गृहीतानि तानि तापाय चाभवन्

Transliteration

duḥkhāny eva sukhānīti mṛgatṛṣṇājalāśayā mayā nātha gṛhītāni tāni tāpāya cābhavan

Translation

O Lord, mistaking suffering itself for happiness—like one who hopes for water in a mirage—I pursued and seized those pleasures; and they only became fuel for my burning anguish.

Word by Word

• दुःखानि: sorrows
• दुःखानि: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दुःख (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (Case 1/2), बहुवचन

• एव: indeed/only
• एव: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: निश्चयार्थक-अव्यय (emphatic particle)

• सुखानि: pleasures
• सुखानि: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सुख (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (Case 1/2), बहुवचन

• इति: thus (thinking)
• इति: Sambandha (Quotation marker/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इति (अव्यय)
• Form: उक्त्यर्थक-अव्यय (quotative particle)

• मृगतृष्णा-जल-आशया: by the hope of mirage-water
• मृगतृष्णा-जल-आशया: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मृगतृष्णा (प्रातिपदिक) + जल (प्रातिपदिक) + आशा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया (Case 3/करण), एकवचन; समासः—षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (मृगतृष्णायाः जलम् इव आशा)

• मया: by me
• मया: Karta (Agent/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: उत्तमपुरुष-सर्वनाम, तृतीया (Case 3), एकवचन

• नाथ: O lord
• नाथ: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नाथ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (Case 8), एकवचन

• गृहीतानि: taken/accepted
• गृहीतानि: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ग्रह् (धातु) → गृहीत (कृदन्त, क्त-प्रत्यय)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past passive participle), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, बहुवचन

• तानि: those (things)
• तानि: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (Case 1), बहुवचन

• तापाय: for torment
• तापाय: Sampradana (Purpose/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ताप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी (Case 4/सम्प्रदान), एकवचन

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Conjunction/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• अभवन्: became
• अभवन्: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भू (धातु)
• Form: लङ्-लकार (Imperfect/Past), प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन, परस्मैपद

Speaker

A supplicant/devotee addressing the Lord (within Parasara’s narration to Maitreya)

Avatara Context

Avatara: Krishna

Purpose: As the Supreme Lord present on earth, Krishna receives the devotee’s confession and redirects him from illusory pleasures toward refuge in Bhagavan.

Leela: Moksha-dana

Dharma Restored: Vairāgya and śaraṇāgati (turning from transient pleasures to the Lord)

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Worldly pleasures, mistaken for happiness, are like mirage-water and culminate in duḥkha when grasped as real.

Vedantic Theme: Maya

Application: Treat cravings as mirage-like; pause before indulgence, observe the aftertaste of agitation, and redirect attention to lasting spiritual practice.

Vishishtadvaita: The jīva’s dependence is implied: finite enjoyments cannot satisfy; lasting fulfillment is found only in relation to the Lord.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Krishna

Bhakti Type: Shanta

Characters & Entities

• Vishnu

FAQs

What is the significance of the mirage (mṛgatṛṣṇā) metaphor in the Vishnu Purana?

It frames worldly pleasures as deceptive appearances—pursued as “happiness” but yielding only distress—urging detachment and turning the mind toward Vishnu.

How does Sage Parasara explain the problem of mistaking pleasure for happiness?

Through instructive narration and exempla, he presents sense-driven “sukha” as bound up with duḥkha, so that true well-being lies in discernment, renunciation, and devotion to the Lord.

The theological importance of Lord Vishnu in this context?

Vishnu is addressed as the ultimate refuge: recognizing the mirage of samsaric joy becomes the pivot for surrender, where lasting peace is sought in the Supreme Lord rather than transient objects.