Shloka 35

पौण्ड्रक-वधः, कृत्या-प्रशमनम्, वाराणसी-दाहः

Devanagari script

काशिराजसुतेनेयम् आराध्य वृषभध्वजम् उत्पादिता महाकृत्येत्य् अवगम्याथ चक्रिणा

Transliteration

kāśirājasuteneyam ārādhya vṛṣabhadhvajam utpāditā mahākṛtyety avagamyātha cakriṇā

Translation

Then Cakrī, the wielder of the discus, understood: “This great calamity has been brought forth by the daughter of the King of Kāśī, after propitiating Vṛṣabhadhvaja (Śiva, whose banner bears the bull).”

Word by Word

• काशिराजसुतेन: by the son of the king of Kāśī
• काशिराजसुतेन: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: काशिराज (प्रातिपदिक) + सुता (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग? (न) — वस्तुतः पुल्लिङ्ग/स्त्रीलिङ्ग-समासः; तृतीया-विभक्ति (करण), एकवचन; 'सुतेन' = 'सुत' (पुं) तृतीया एकवचन; समासः षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (काशिराजस्य सुतः)

• इयम्: this (she/this one)
• इयम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: इदम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन (demonstrative pronoun)

• आराध्य: having worshipped
• आराध्य: Purvakala-kriya (पूर्वकालक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: आ-राध् (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (absolutive/gerund), अव्ययभावः; 'having worshipped/propitiated'

• वृषभध्वजम्: the bull-bannered one (Śiva)
• वृषभध्वजम्: Karman (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वृषभ (प्रातिपदिक) + ध्वज (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; समासः कर्मधारय/षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः—'वृषभः ध्वजः यस्य' (epithet of Śiva)

• उत्पादिता: was produced/created
• उत्पादिता: Kriya-visheshana (Predicate/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: उत्-पद्/उत्-पाद् (धातु)
• Form: कृदन्त-क्त (past passive participle), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; कर्मणि प्रयोगः—'produced/created'

• महाकृत्या: a great kṛtyā (magical female entity)
• महाकृत्या: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महा (उपसर्ग/प्रातिपदिक) + कृत्या (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; कर्मधारयः—'महती कृत्या'

• इति: thus
• इति: Sambandha (Quotation marker)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इति (अव्यय)
• Form: उद्धरण/निगमनार्थक अव्यय (quotative particle)

• अवगम्य: having understood
• अवगम्य: Purvakala-kriya (पूर्वकालक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: अव-गम् (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (absolutive/gerund), अव्ययभावः; 'having understood/realized'

• अथ: then
• अथ: Discourse connector
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अथ (अव्यय)
• Form: सम्बन्ध/अनन्तरार्थक अव्यय (then/now)

• चक्रिणा: by the discus-bearer (Viṣṇu)
• चक्रिणा: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: चक्रिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; 'one who has the discus' (Viṣṇu)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Teaching: Historical

Quality: authoritative

Avatara Context

Avatara: Krishna

Purpose: Krishna, as the wielder of Sudarśana, intervenes to neutralize a destructive magical assault and protect the Yādavas and cosmic order.

Leela: Loka-rakshana

Dharma Restored: Protection of the righteous from adharmic sorcery and the reassertion of Viṣṇu’s sovereign safeguard (rakṣaṇa) over the world.

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Adharmic power gained through propitiation can generate calamity, yet it remains answerable to the higher sovereignty of Bhagavān’s protection.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Do not instrumentalize worship for harm; seek divine power for protection, self-restraint, and dharma rather than vengeance.

Vishishtadvaita: Bhagavān’s lordship is supreme over all other divine agencies, integrating them within His governance of the world-order.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Krishna

Characters & Entities

• Cakrī (Vishnu/Krishna)
• Vṛṣabhadhvaja (Shiva)
• Kāśīrāja (King of Kashi)
• Mahākṛtyā (great kṛtyā/ritual-born destructive force)

FAQs

What is the significance of a ‘kṛtyā’ in the Vishnu Purana?

In this verse, the mahākṛtyā represents a ritually generated force of destruction used in royal conflict; it functions as a narrative symbol of adharma that must be recognized and restrained by divine sovereignty.

How does Sage Parāśara explain divine discernment in this episode?

Parāśara frames the turning point as Cakrī’s clear recognition of the cause—understanding that the calamity arose from the Kāśī princess’s propitiation of Vṛṣabhadhvaja—before the divine response unfolds.

What is the theological importance of Lord Vishnu (Cakrī) here?

Cakrī is portrayed as the supreme guardian of cosmic and social order: he identifies the source of disorder and, by implication, restores dharma—an emphasis consistent with Vaishnava readings of Vishnu’s overriding sovereignty.