Shloka 32

कलौ धर्मसुलभता — व्यासोपाख्यानम् एवं संकीर्तन-प्रधानता

Devanagari script

ततः प्रहस्य तान् प्राह कृष्णद्वैपायनो मुनिः विस्मयोत्फुल्लनयनांस् तापसांस् तान् उपागतान्

Transliteration

tataḥ prahasya tān prāha kṛṣṇadvaipāyano muniḥ vismayotphullanayanāṃs tāpasāṃs tān upāgatān

Translation

Then, smiling, the sage Kṛṣṇa Dvaipāyana (Vyāsa) addressed those ascetics who had come to him, their eyes widened and blossoming with astonishment.

Word by Word

• tataḥ: then
• tataḥ: Sambandha (Temporal/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tataḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: अनन्तरवाचक-अव्यय

• prahasya: having laughed
• prahasya: Sambandha (Prior action/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pra-√has (धातु) + lyap (कृत् प्रत्यय)
• Form: क्त्वान्त/ल्यपन्त-अव्ययकृदन्त (absolutive/gerund), ‘प्रहस्य’ (having laughed)

• tān: them
• tān: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), बहुवचन

• prāha: said
• prāha: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pra-√ah (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (perfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपदम्

• kṛṣṇa-dvaipāyanaḥ: Kṛṣṇa Dvaipāyana (Vyāsa)
• kṛṣṇa-dvaipāyanaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṛṣṇa (प्रातिपदिक) + dvaipāyana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन; नाम (Vyāsa)

• muniḥ: the sage
• muniḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: muni (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन; apposition to previous

• vismaya-utphulla-nayanān: with eyes widened in wonder
• vismaya-utphulla-nayanān: Karma (Object qualifier/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vismaya (प्रातिपदिक) + utphulla (प्रातिपदिक) + nayana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), बहुवचन; बहुपद-तत्पुरुषः; ‘विस्मयेन उत्फुल्लानि नयनानि येषाम्’ इत्यर्थे विशेषणम्

• tāpasān: ascetics
• tāpasān: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tāpasa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), बहुवचन

• tān: those
• tān: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), बहुवचन; पुनरुक्त-निर्देश (those)

• upāgatān: who had come near
• upāgatān: Karma (Object qualifier/कर्म)
• Type: Verb
• Root: upa-ā-√gam (धातु) + kta (कृत् प्रत्यय)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past participle, active sense), पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), बहुवचन; ‘उपागतान्’ (who had approached)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (narrating the episode; the direct speaker within the verse is Kṛṣṇa Dvaipāyana/Vyāsa)

Characters & Entities

• Kṛṣṇa Dvaipāyana (Vyāsa)
• Tāpasa (ascetics)

FAQs

What is the significance of Vyāsa (Kṛṣṇa Dvaipāyana) appearing in Ansha 6 of the Vishnu Purana?

His presence signals textual authority and transmission of dharma-knowledge in the troubled age of Kali, where sages seek guidance amid decline.

How does the Vishnu Purana portray the reaction of ascetics to extraordinary events or teachings?

It emphasizes reverent wonder—here shown by “eyes blossoming with astonishment”—to mark moments of revelation and turning points in the Kali-yuga narrative.

What is the theological importance of Lord Vishnu in this context, even though the verse names Vyāsa?

Vyāsa functions as a dharma-transmitter within Vishnu’s cosmic order; the Purāṇa’s frame treats such sages as instruments through whom Vishnu’s sustaining sovereignty operates in time.