Shloka 20

यादवक्षयः, बलराम-निर्याणम्, कृष्णस्य उपसंहारः (प्रभासे विनाशः)

Devanagari script

देवैर् विज्ञाप्यते चेदं अथात्रैव रतिस् तव तत् स्थीयतां यथाकालम् आख्येयम् अनुजीविभिः

Transliteration

devair vijñāpyate cedaṃ athātraiva ratis tava tat sthīyatāṃ yathākālam ākhyeyam anujīvibhiḥ

Translation

This matter is being made known by the gods themselves. If your heart’s delight is to remain here, then stay until the proper time, so that those who live by your protection may, in due season, declare what must be declared.

Word by Word

• devaiḥ: by the gods
• devaiḥ: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; तृतीया (3rd), बहुवचन

• vijñāpyate: is informed/communicated
• vijñāpyate: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vi-√jñap (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन; कर्मणि प्रयोग (passive); √ज्ञप् = to inform/request; उपसर्ग: वि

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector/समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (समुच्चय/ conjunction)

• idam: this
• idam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: idam (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; सर्वनाम (here: subject of passive ‘this is communicated’)

• atha: then, now
• atha: Sambandha (Discourse particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atha (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (निपात/particle) = ‘now/then’

• atra: here
• atra: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atra (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (देशवाचक) = ‘here’

• eva: indeed, just
• eva: Sambandha (Emphasis/अवधारण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (अवधारण/particle) = ‘indeed/just’

• ratiḥ: delight, affection
• ratiḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rati (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• tava: your
• tava: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tvad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी (6th), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• tat: that
• tat: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; सर्वनाम (referring to the matter/that)

• sthīyatām: let it remain
• sthīyatām: Vidhi (Injunction/विधि)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sthā (धातु)
• Form: लोट् (Imperative), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन; आत्मनेपद; √स्था = ‘let it remain/let it stand’

• yathā-kālam: at the proper time
• yathā-kālam: Kriya-visheshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yathā (अव्यय) + kāla (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययीभावसमासः; नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; क्रियाविशेषणार्थे = ‘according to the proper time’

• ākhyeyam: to be told, should be declared
• ākhyeyam: Karya (Obligation/कार्य)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ā-√khyā (धातु)
• Form: कृत्य-प्रत्यय (gerundive; -य) = to be told/should be declared; नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन

• anujīvibhiḥ: by the attendants/dependents
• anujīvibhiḥ: Karana (Agent/Instrument in passive/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: anujīvin (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; तृतीया (3rd), बहुवचन; ‘dependents/attendants’

Speaker

Unspecified (contextual divine or courtly address; likely a collective voice aligned with the devas)

Avatara Context

Avatara: Krishna

Purpose: Kṛṣṇa remains until the divinely appointed time so that the Yādavas and the gods can witness and proclaim the ordained close of his avatāra-mission.

Leela: Loka-rakshana

Dharma Restored: Orderly completion of the avatāra-cycle and protection of cosmic order through timely withdrawal

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: The Lord’s līlā unfolds by divine timing (kāla), and the protector remains as long as beings dependent on him require shelter.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Cultivate patience and trust in providential timing while sustaining responsibility toward those under one’s care.

Vishishtadvaita: The Supreme freely governs history while remaining accessible as the personal protector of dependent souls (śeṣa-śeṣi relation).

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Krishna

Bhakti Type: Shanta

Characters & Entities

• Devas (gods)

FAQs

What is the significance of acting “in due time” (yathākālam) in the Vishnu Purana?

This verse highlights kāla (right timing) as part of cosmic order: events unfold when conditions ripen, and announcements or actions should align with that ordained sequence.

How does the Vishnu Purana frame divine communication through the devas?

Here the devas function as conveyors of a higher directive—indicating that worldly decisions and narrative turns are often synchronized with a broader divine governance.

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

Even when Vishnu is not named, the verse reflects Vaishnava cosmology where devas operate within Vishnu’s supreme order—kāla and dharma ultimately serve the Sovereign Reality.