Shloka 28

आत्यन्तिक-लयहेतुः: तापत्रय-विवेचनम् तथा ‘भगवान्/वासुदेव’ शब्दार्थः

Threefold Suffering and the Path to Final Liberation; Meaning of Bhagavān and Vāsudeva

Devanagari script

दूरप्रणष्टनयनो व्योमान्तर्गततारकः नासाविवरनिर्यातलोमपुञ्जश् चलद्वपुः

Transliteration

dūrapraṇaṣṭanayano vyomāntargatatārakaḥ nāsāvivaraniryātalomapuñjaś caladvapuḥ

Translation

His eyes seemed to vanish into the far distance, like a star swallowed by the depths of the sky; from his nostrils issued trembling tufts of hair, and his whole body quivered.

Word by Word

• दूरप्रणष्टनयनः: whose eyes have sunk far in
• दूरप्रणष्टनयनः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: दूर + प्रणष्ट + नयन (प्रातिपदिक); प्रणष्ट (कृदन्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण; समासः—कर्मधारय (दूरे प्रणष्टे नयने यस्य)

• व्योम-अन्तर्गत-तारकः: with pupils like stars set deep in the sky
• व्योम-अन्तर्गत-तारकः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: व्योमन् + अन्तर्गत + तारक (प्रातिपदिक); अन्तर्गत (कृदन्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण; समासः—तत्पुरुष (व्योमनि अन्तर्गताः तारकाः इव यस्य)

• नासाविवरनिर्यातलोमपुञ्जः: with tufts of hair protruding from the nostrils
• नासाविवरनिर्यातलोमपुञ्जः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: नासा + विवर + निर्यात + लोम + पुञ्ज (प्रातिपदिक); निर्यात (कृदन्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण; समासः—तत्पुरुष (नासायाः विवरात् निर्यातः लोमपुञ्जः यस्य)

• चलद्वपुः: with a trembling body
• चलद्वपुः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: चलत् (कृदन्त) + वपुस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण; समासः—कर्मधारय (चलत् वपुः यस्य)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Further marks of senescence and bodily instability, deepening the contemplation of duhkha and impermanence

Teaching: Ethical

Quality: revealing

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: The senses fail and the body trembles, showing that sensory confidence is unreliable and cannot ground lasting happiness.

Vedantic Theme: Maya

Application: Shift reliance from sensory pleasure to steady practice—scriptural study, remembrance of Vishnu, and compassion.

Vishishtadvaita: The senses are real but limited instruments of the jīva; lasting fulfillment comes from relation to the Lord, not from fluctuating indriyas.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Hari

Bhakti Type: Shanta

FAQs

What is the significance of vivid bodily imagery in the Vishnu Purana’s dynasty narratives?

This verse uses physical signs—vacant gaze, trembling body, and hair bristling—to intensify the moral and emotional stakes of a royal episode, making inner turmoil visible within the larger dharmic storyline.

How does Sage Parāśara explain a character’s inner state in this passage?

By poetic comparison and concrete bodily description: the eyes are likened to a star disappearing into the sky, while trembling and bristling indicate overpowering emotion and loss of composure.

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

Even when Vishnu is not named in the verse, the Purana’s royal histories are framed under Vishnu’s sovereign order—human passions and reversals unfold within a cosmos ultimately governed by the Supreme Reality (Vishnu).