Shloka 29

अर्जुनस्य अन्त्येष्टि, द्वारकाप्लावनम्, कलिप्रवेशः, कालोपदेशः

Devanagari script

ततः सुदुःखितो जिष्णुः कष्टं कष्टम् इति ब्रुवन् अहो भगवता तेन मुक्तो ऽस्मीति रुरोद वै

Transliteration

tataḥ suduḥkhito jiṣṇuḥ kaṣṭaṃ kaṣṭam iti bruvan aho bhagavatā tena mukto 'smīti ruroda vai

Translation

Then Jiṣṇu, overwhelmed with intense sorrow, kept repeating, “Alas, what suffering, what suffering!” Yet, realizing the Lord’s grace, he cried, “Ah! By Him—the Blessed Bhagavān—I have been released,” and he wept indeed.

Word by Word

• ततः: then
• ततः: Adhikarana (Temporal/कालाधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb): then

• सु-दुःखितः: very distressed
• सु-दुःखितः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सु (अव्यय-उपसर्गवत्) + दुःखित (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (masculine), प्रथमा (nominative/1st), एकवचन (singular); कर्मधारय (very sorrowful)

• जिष्णुः: Jiṣṇu (Arjuna)
• जिष्णुः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: जिष्णु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (masculine), प्रथमा (nominative/1st), एकवचन (singular)

• कष्टम्: alas! hardship!
• कष्टम्: Karma (Utterance content/उक्ति-विषय)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कष्ट (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (neuter), द्वितीया (accusative/2nd), एकवचन (singular); उक्ति-विषय (quoted exclamation)

• कष्टम्: alas!
• कष्टम्: Karma (Utterance content/उक्ति-विषय)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कष्ट (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (neuter), द्वितीया (accusative/2nd), एकवचन (singular); पुनरुक्ति (repetition for emphasis)

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

• ब्रुवन्: saying
• ब्रुवन्: Kriya (Concurrent action/सहकालक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ब्रू (धातु) → ब्रुवत् (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: वर्तमानकृदन्त (present participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (nominative/1st), एकवचन (singular)

• अहो: ah! oh!
• अहो: Sambandha (Exclamation/उद्गार)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अहो (अव्यय)
• Form: विस्मय/शोकादि-उद्गार (interjection)

• भगवता: by the Lord
• भगवता: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भगवत् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (masculine), तृतीया (instrumental/3rd), एकवचन (singular)

• तेन: by him/thereby
• तेन: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (instrumental/3rd), एकवचन (singular)

• मुक्तः: freed, released
• मुक्तः: Kriya (Result state/क्रिया-फल)
• Type: Verb
• Root: मुच् (धातु) → मुक्त (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past passive participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (nominative/1st), एकवचन (singular)

• अस्मि: I am
• अस्मि: Kriya (Copula/अस्ति-क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: अस् (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), परस्मैपदम्, उत्तमपुरुष (1st person), एकवचन (singular)

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

• रुरोद: he wept
• रुरोद: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: रुद् (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), परस्मैपदम्, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन (singular)

• वै: indeed
• वै: Sambandha (Emphasis/निश्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: वै (अव्यय)
• Form: निश्चयार्थक-निपात (particle: indeed)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Teaching: Devotional

Quality: compassionate

Avatara Context

Avatara: Krishna

Purpose: Krishna releases Arjuna from the burden of worldly protectorship by revealing, through failure and sorrow, the limit of human agency after the Lord’s departure.

Leela: Moksha-dana

Dharma Restored: Reorientation from reliance on arms to reliance on Bhagavān; acceptance of divine will in the face of irreversible change

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Sorrow becomes salvific when it turns into recognition of Bhagavān’s grace and the soul’s dependence on him.

Vedantic Theme: Moksha

Application: In personal loss, practice remembrance and surrender—transform grief into prayer, gratitude, and steadiness.

Vishishtadvaita: Grace (anugraha) ‘releases’ the jīva from mistaken self-sufficiency, revealing the Lord as the inner ruler and final refuge even amid worldly collapse.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Bhagavat

Bhakti Type: Shanta

Characters & Entities

• Bhagavān (Lord Vishnu)
• Jiṣṇu

FAQs

What is the significance of liberation (moksha) in this verse of the Vishnu Purana?

The verse frames moksha as a direct result of Bhagavān’s intervention—sorrow remains humanly felt, but is resolved by recognizing divine release from bondage.

How does Sage Parashara explain the movement from suffering to relief in the narrative?

Through a psychological turn: the character voices distress (“kaṣṭam kaṣṭam”), then immediately attributes freedom to Bhagavān, showing that realization of the Lord’s grace transforms the meaning of suffering.

What is the theological importance of Lord Vishnu here?

Vishnu is presented as Bhagavān—the sovereign, compassionate agent of emancipation—reinforcing a Vaishnava view where liberation is ultimately granted by the Supreme Lord’s grace.