Shloka 25

प्रलय-त्रिविध-विभागः एवं प्राकृतप्रलय-वर्णनम्

Devanagari script

पातालानि समस्तानि स दग्ध्वा ज्वलनो महान् भूमिम् अभ्येत्य सकलं बभस्ति वसुधातलम्

Transliteration

pātālāni samastāni sa dagdhvā jvalano mahān bhūmim abhyetya sakalaṃ babhasti vasudhātalam

Translation

Having consumed all the Pātālas, that mighty Fire rises to the earth and, spreading everywhere, sets the whole surface of the world ablaze.

Word by Word

• पातालानि: the netherworlds (Pātālas)
• पातालानि: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पाताल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (Case 1/2), बहुवचन

• समस्तानि: all, entire
• समस्तानि: Visheshana (Adjectival/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: समस्त (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (Case 1/2), बहुवचन; विशेषण (qualifying पातालानि)

• स: he
• स: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (Case 1), एकवचन; सर्वनाम (pronoun)

• दग्ध्वा: having burned
• दग्ध्वा: Kriya-visheshaṇa (Adverbial to main verb/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: दह् (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त अव्ययकृदन्त (gerund/absolutive), पूर्वकाले (having done)

• ज्वलनः: the fire
• ज्वलनः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ज्वलन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (Case 1), एकवचन

• महान्: great, mighty
• महान्: Visheshana (Adjectival/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: महत् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (Case 1), एकवचन; विशेषण (qualifying ज्वलनः)

• भूमिम्: the earth
• भूमिम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भूमि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (Case 2), एकवचन

• अभ्येत्य: having reached
• अभ्येत्य: Kriya-visheshaṇa (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: अभि-इ (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त अव्ययकृदन्त (gerund/absolutive), पूर्वकाले (having approached/come to)

• सकलम्: entire, whole
• सकलम्: Visheshana (Adjectival/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सकल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (Case 2), एकवचन; विशेषण (qualifying वसुधातलम्)

• बभस्ति: shines, blazes
• बभस्ति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भस् (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन

• वसुधातलम्: the surface of the earth
• वसुधातलम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वसुधा + तल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (Case 2), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (वसुधायाः तलम्)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Types and process of pralaya (dissolution), and the cosmic fire that consumes the worlds

Teaching: Cosmological

Quality: authoritative

Cosmological Context

Cosmic Hierarchy: Lokas

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: At the time of dissolution, the pralaya-fire rises from the nether regions and consumes the earth, showing the impermanence of all conditioned worlds.

Vedantic Theme: Maya

Application: Cultivate detachment (vairāgya) from worldly security and orient life toward lasting spiritual aims.

Vishishtadvaita: The perishable worlds (acit) undergo dissolution while the supreme Lord remains the enduring ground of order beyond cosmic change.

Characters & Entities

• Pātāla (nether regions)
• Jvalana (cosmic fire)
• Bhūmi (Earth)

FAQs

What is the significance of the great fire burning the Pātālas in the Vishnu Purana?

It marks the onset of pralaya imagery: even the lowest realms are not exempt from dissolution, showing that all levels of the cosmos are subject to cyclical reabsorption.

How does Sage Parāśara explain cosmic dissolution in this chapter’s narrative flow?

Parāśara describes dissolution as a staged process—fire spreads upward through the cosmic layers—emphasizing a lawful, sequential unwinding of creation rather than random catastrophe.

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

Though Vishnu is not named in this specific verse, the pralaya process is presented within a Vishnu-centered framework: time, destruction, and restoration operate under the Supreme Reality’s governance.