Shloka 16

भाण्डीरवट-क्रीडा: प्रलम्बासुरवधः, मानुष्यलीला, एक-कारण-तत्त्वम्

Devanagari script

संकर्षणं तु स्कन्धेन शीघ्रम् उत्क्षिप्य दानवः न तस्थौ प्रजगामैव सचन्द्र इव वारिदः

Transliteration

saṃkarṣaṇaṃ tu skandhena śīghram utkṣipya dānavaḥ na tasthau prajagāmaiva sacandra iva vāridaḥ

Translation

But the dānava, swiftly heaving Saṃkarṣaṇa onto his shoulder, did not remain there; he moved away at once, like a cloud bearing the moon across the sky.

Word by Word

• संकर्षणम्: Saṅkarṣaṇa (Balarāma)
• संकर्षणम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: संकर्षण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• तु: but
• तु: Discourse particle (निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निपात — contrast/emphasis

• स्कन्धेन: with (his) shoulder
• स्कन्धेन: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्कन्ध (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• शीघ्रम्: quickly
• शीघ्रम्: Manner adjunct (रीति)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: शीघ्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: क्रियाविशेषणरूपेण नपुंसकलिङ्ग द्वितीया एकवचन; अव्ययवत् प्रयोगः — ‘quickly’

• उत्क्षिप्य: having lifted
• उत्क्षिप्य: Purvakala (Prior action/पूर्वक्रिया)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: उत् + क्षिप् (धातु) + ल्यप् (अव्ययकृदन्त)
• Form: अव्ययकृदन्त (ल्यप्) — ‘having lifted up’

• दानवः: the demon
• दानवः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दानव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• न: not
• न: Negation (निषेध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निषेध (negation particle)

• तस्थौ: stood, remained
• तस्थौ: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: स्था (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद; ‘stood/remained’

• प्रजगाम: went away
• प्रजगाम: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्र + गम् (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद; ‘went forth’

• एव: indeed, just
• एव: Emphasis (अवधारण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधारण (emphatic particle)

• सचन्द्रः: together with the moon
• सचन्द्रः: Upamana (Standard of comparison/उपमान)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: स (उपसर्ग/सह) + चन्द्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; सहार्थक-तत्पुरुष ‘चन्द्रेण सह’

• इव: like
• इव: Upama marker (उपमा)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इव (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; उपमावाचक (comparative particle)

• वारिदः: a cloud
• वारिदः: Karta (Subject in simile/उपमेय)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वारिद (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)

Avatara Context

Avatara: Krishna

Purpose: In Kṛṣṇa’s Vraja-līlā, the Lord’s associates (notably Saṅkarṣaṇa/Balarāma) subdue disguised dānavas who threaten the cowherd community.

Leela: Yuddha

Dharma Restored: Protection of the Lord’s companions and prevention of adharma through the exposure of demonic deceit.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Krishna

Bhakti Type: Sakhya

Vyuha Form: Sankarshana

Characters & Entities

• Saṃkarṣaṇa (Balarama)
• Dānava (demon)

FAQs

What is the significance of Saṃkarṣaṇa (Balarāma) in the Vishnu Purana?

This verse highlights Saṃkarṣaṇa as a manifestation of divine power—so formidable that even a dānava’s sudden seizure becomes only a passing motion within the Lord’s larger triumph of dharma.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the movement of the dānava in this scene?

Parāśara uses a vivid simile—“like a cloud with the moon”—to show the demon’s swift withdrawal after hoisting Saṃkarṣaṇa, emphasizing speed, spectacle, and the transient nature of demonic force.

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

Even when the verse names Saṃkarṣaṇa, the Vaishnava frame remains: Vishnu’s supreme sovereignty is expressed through his divine manifestations, who subdue disorder and re-establish righteous order.