Shloka 36

Śakaṭa-bhañjana, Naming by Garga, Dāmodara and Yamala-arjuna, and the Move to Vṛndāvana

Devanagari script

प्रावृट्कालस् ततो ऽतीव मेघौघस्थगिताम्बरः बभूव वारिधाराभिर् ऐक्यं कुर्वन् दिशाम् इव

Transliteration

prāvṛṭkālas tato 'tīva meghaughasthagitāmbaraḥ babhūva vāridhārābhir aikyaṃ kurvan diśām iva

Translation

Then came the season of rains—so fierce that the sky was hidden by surging masses of clouds; and by its unbroken streams of water it seemed to fuse the quarters into one, erasing their separateness.

Word by Word

• प्रावृट्कालः: the rainy season
• प्रावृट्कालः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: प्रावृट् (प्रातिपदिक) + काल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (प्रावृटः कालः = the time/season of rains)

• ततः: then/thereupon
• ततः: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अव्यय-प्रकारः: क्रियाविशेषण (adverb)

• अतीव: exceedingly
• अतीव: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अतीव (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; तीव्रतावाचक-क्रियाविशेषण (intensifying adverb)

• मेघौघस्थगिताम्बरः: whose sky was covered by masses of clouds
• मेघौघस्थगिताम्बरः: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: मेघ (प्रातिपदिक) + ओघ (प्रातिपदिक) + स्थगित (कृदन्त; √स्थग्/स्थग् धातु) + अम्बर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; बहुपद-तत्पुरुषसमासः (मेघौघेन स्थगितम् अम्बरं यस्य)

• बभूव: became/was
• बभूव: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √भू (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपदम

• वारिधाराभिः: by streams of rain
• वारिधाराभिः: Karana (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वारि (प्रातिपदिक) + धारा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (Instrumental/3rd), बहुवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (वारिणः धाराः)

• ऐक्यम्: unity/oneness
• ऐक्यम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ऐक्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन

• कुर्वन्: making/causing
• कुर्वन्: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √कृ (धातु)
• Form: वर्तमान-कृदन्त (शतृ/Present active participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; परस्मैपदी

• दिशाम्: of the directions
• दिशाम्: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दिश् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (Genitive/6th), बहुवचन

• इव: as if/like
• इव: Upamana (उपमान)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इव (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; उपमानवाचक-निपात (particle of comparison)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Teaching: Historical

Quality: poetic-descriptive

Avatara Context

Avatara: Krishna

Purpose: To lighten the earth’s burden by destroying tyrannical forces and to re-establish dharma through divine līlā.

Leela: Loka-rakshana

Dharma Restored: Cosmic and social order through the Lord’s presence in Vraja and the world.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Krishna

Bhakti Type: Shanta

FAQs

What is the significance of the rainy season (Prāvṛṭ) in the Vishnu Purana?

This verse presents Prāvṛṭ as a powerfully ordering force of time—clouds and rain reshape the visible world, symbolically showing how cyclical time governs and renews creation.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the regulation of time through nature?

In this chapter’s seasonal sequence, Parāśara uses vivid natural markers—cloud cover, rainfall, and atmospheric change—to show time (kāla) operating as a structured cycle rather than a random flow.

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

Even when Vishnu is not named, the Purāṇic vision treats cosmic regularity—like the dependable rhythm of seasons—as sustained by the Supreme Reality, with nature’s order reflecting Vishnu’s sovereignty.