Shloka 21
नैमित्तिक-प्राकृत-प्रलयवर्णनम्
Periodic and Elemental Dissolution; Reabsorption into Paramātman
प्रलीने च ततस् तस्मिन् वायुभूते ऽखिलात्मनि प्रणष्टे रूपतन्मात्रे हृतरूपो विभावसुः
pralīne ca tatas tasmin vāyubhūte 'khilātmani praṇaṣṭe rūpatanmātre hṛtarūpo vibhāvasuḥ
When the all-pervading Self became the principle of Wind and the former state dissolved, and when the subtle essence of form (rūpa-tanmātra) perished, then Vibhāvasu—Fire—bereft of form, was withdrawn into its source.
Sage Parāśara (teaching Maitreya)
Creation Stage: Primary
Concept: In dissolution, fire (tejas) loses its defining form as its subtle cause (rūpa-tanmātra) is withdrawn into the prior principle, showing the ordered reabsorption of tattvas into their sources under the all-pervading Self.
Vedantic Theme: Maya
Application: Contemplate impermanence: observe how sensory qualities depend on subtler causes, cultivating dispassion toward external forms.
Vishishtadvaita: The ‘all-pervading Self’ remains the inner ruler while elemental powers subside, implying a real cosmos dependent on Viṣṇu as its support and cause.
Vishnu Form: Para-Brahman
Antaryamin: Yes
Jagat Karana: Yes
FAQs
This verse shows that when the subtle essence of form (rūpa-tanmātra) disappears, Fire (Agni)—which depends on form/visibility—loses its defining quality and is reabsorbed, illustrating dissolution from gross elements into subtler principles.
Parāśara presents a stepwise reabsorption: as the cosmos returns into subtler states, Fire is deprived of its ‘form’ and merges when the rūpa-tanmātra is gone, with the universal principle described as becoming ‘wind’ (vāyubhūta) in the sequence.
Even while naming elemental principles, the verse frames pralaya as occurring within the ‘all-Self’ (akhilātman), aligning with Vishnu Purana theology that Vishnu is the supreme ground in which elements arise and into which they finally return.