Shloka 18

नरकासुरवधः, अदीतिकुण्डल-प्रत्यर्पणम्, तथा भारावतरण-लीला

Devanagari script

मुरोस् तु तनयान् सप्त सहस्रांस् तांस् ततो हरिः चक्रधाराग्निनिर्दग्धांश् चकार शलभान् इव

Transliteration

muros tu tanayān sapta sahasrāṃs tāṃs tato hariḥ cakradhārāgninirdagdhāṃś cakāra śalabhān iva

Translation

Then Hari, seeing Mura’s seven thousand sons, burned them with the fire that blazed from the Sudarśana discus—like moths consumed in a flame.

Word by Word

• मुरोः: of Muru
• मुरोः: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मुरु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• तु: however
• तु: Sambandha (Discourse particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; विरोध/विशेषार्थक (but/indeed)

• तनयान्: sons
• तनयान्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तनय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• सप्त: seven
• सप्त: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सप्त (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययवत् संख्या; ‘तनयान्’ इत्यस्य विशेषणम् (indeclinable numeral used adjectivally)

• सहस्रान्: (as) thousands
• सहस्रान्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सहस्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; संख्या/परिमाणवाचक विशेषण

• तान्: them
• तान्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; सर्वनाम

• ततः: then
• ततः: Adhikarana (Temporal locus/कालाधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; क्रम/कालवाचक

• हरिः: Hari
• हरिः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: हरि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• चक्रधाराग्निनिर्दग्धान्: burnt by the fire-stream of the discus
• चक्रधाराग्निनिर्दग्धान्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: चक्र-धारा-अग्नि-निर्दग्ध (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास (चक्रधारायाः अग्निना निर्दग्धाः)

• चकार: made/turned (into)
• चकार: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: कृ (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (परोक्षभूत/Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपद

• शलभान्: moths
• शलभान्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शलभ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• इव: like
• इव: Sambandha (Comparison marker/उपमा)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इव (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; उपमा-वाचक (simile particle)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)

Avatara Context

Avatara: Krishna

Purpose: Śrī Kṛṣṇa annihilates Mura’s progeny with Sudarśana’s blazing power to end the asuric line and secure the worlds.

Leela: Yuddha

Dharma Restored: Stability of the worlds through removal of massed daitya violence

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Asuric power, however numerous, collapses instantly before the Lord’s sovereign śakti when it opposes dharma.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Treat arrogance and cruelty (personal or social) as self-destructive; align action with dharma rather than multiplying force.

Vishishtadvaita: The Supreme’s will (saṅkalpa) governs the many without negating their reality, establishing order through His śakti.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Hari

Characters & Entities

• Hari (Vishnu/Krishna)
• Mura
• Sons of Mura

FAQs

What is the significance of the Sudarśana Chakra in this verse of the Vishnu Purana?

It functions as the Lord’s irresistible power that enforces cosmic order—an emblem of Vishnu/Krishna’s sovereignty that instantly consumes forces opposed to dharma.

How does Sage Parāśara frame Krishna’s destruction of Mura’s sons in the narrative?

As a swift, effortless act: the demon-host is compared to moths in a flame, highlighting that hostile power collapses immediately before the Supreme Lord.

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

The verse portrays Hari as the Supreme Reality who preserves the worlds by dissolving adharma; his power is not merely heroic but cosmic and governing.