Shloka 2

नैमित्तिक-प्राकृत-प्रलयवर्णनम्

Periodic and Elemental Dissolution; Reabsorption into Paramātman

Devanagari script

मुखनिश्वासजो विष्णोर् वायुस् ताञ् जलदांस् ततः नाशयन् वाति मैत्रेय वर्षाणाम् अपरं शतम्

Transliteration

mukhaniśvāsajo viṣṇor vāyus tāñ jaladāṃs tataḥ nāśayan vāti maitreya varṣāṇām aparaṃ śatam

Translation

Then the wind born of Viṣṇu’s very breath blows forth; O Maitreya, raging on, it destroys the rain-bearing clouds for yet another hundred years.

Word by Word

• मुखनिश्वासजः: born from (his) breath from the mouth
• मुखनिश्वासजः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: मुख-निःश्वास-ज (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (मुखस्य निःश्वासात् जातः)

• विष्णोः: of Vishnu
• विष्णोः: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विष्णु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6), एकवचन

• वायुः: wind
• वायुः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वायु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन

• तान्: those
• तान्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), बहुवचन; सर्वनाम

• जलदान्: clouds
• जलदान्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: जलद (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), बहुवचन

• ततः: then
• ततः: Kriya-visheshaṇa (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; क्रम/अनन्तर्यसूचक (then/thereupon)

• नाशयन्: destroying
• नाशयन्: Karta (Agent/कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: नाशय् (णिजन्त, धातु √नश्)
• Form: शतृ (Present Active Participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; वायुः इत्यस्य विशेषणम्

• वाति: blows
• वाति: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वा (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपद

• मैत्रेय: O Maitreya
• मैत्रेय: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मैत्रेय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8), एकवचन

• वर्षाणाम्: of years
• वर्षाणाम्: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वर्ष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6), बहुवचन

• अपरम्: another
• अपरम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अपर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; विशेषणम् (शतम्)

• शतम्: a hundred (years)
• शतम्: Kala-adhikarana (Temporal extent/कालाधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; कालपरिमाणे (duration)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (addressing Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Mechanics and sequencing of dissolution (clouds, winds, waters)

Teaching: Cosmological

Quality: authoritative

Cosmological Context

Creation Stage: Kalpa

Cosmic Hierarchy: Lokas

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Even the sustaining forces of nature (clouds and rains) are withdrawn by the Lord’s will, revealing Him as the efficient and governing cause.

Vedantic Theme: Brahman

Application: See natural powers as dependent; cultivate humility and reliance on the Lord rather than on fluctuating conditions.

Vishishtadvaita: The Lord’s breath as cosmic governance: the universe operates as His body under His direct control (śarīra-śarīrī-bhāva).

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Para-Brahman

Jagat Karana: Yes

Characters & Entities

• Vishnu
• Vayu
• Maitreya
• Jaladā (rain-clouds)

FAQs

What is the significance of Vishnu’s breath in the Vishnu Purana’s pralaya description?

This verse frames dissolution as an act under Viṣṇu’s sovereignty: even the wind that ends the rain-clouds is portrayed as arising from His breath, making pralaya a divinely ordered process rather than chaos.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the mechanism of dissolution here?

Parāśara describes a specific agent—pralaya-wind—destroying the ‘jaladā’ (rain-bearing clouds) over a long duration, emphasizing a step-by-step cosmological unwinding governed by time.

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

Viṣṇu is presented as the supreme controller of the elements and cosmic time: the forces that end the world operate as expressions of His power, aligning with Vaiṣṇava metaphysics where the Absolute directs both creation and dissolution.