Shloka 3

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

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

Devanagari script

शिरोरोगप्रतिश्यायज्वरशूलभगंदरैः गुल्मार्शःश्वासश्वयथुच्छर्द्यादिभिर् अनेकधा

Transliteration

śirorogapratiśyāyajvaraśūlabhagaṃdaraiḥ gulmārśaḥśvāsaśvayathucchardyādibhir anekadhā

Translation

The embodied being is afflicted in countless ways—by diseases of the head, by catarrh and fever, by stabbing pains and fistula; by abdominal swellings and piles; by breathlessness, edema, vomiting, and many other ailments besides.

Word by Word

• शिरोरोगप्रतिश्यायज्वरशूलभगंदरैः: with head-disease, catarrh, fever, pain, fistula, etc.
• शिरोरोगप्रतिश्यायज्वरशूलभगंदरैः: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शिरोरोग (प्रातिपदिक; शिरस् + रोग) + प्रतिश्याय (प्रातिपदिक) + ज्वर (प्रातिपदिक) + शूल (प्रातिपदिक) + भगन्दर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया, बहुवचन; द्वन्द्वसमासः (enumerative): ‘with head-disease, catarrh, fever, pain, fistula…’

• गुल्मार्शःश्वासश्वयथुच्छर्द्यादिभिः: with tumors, piles, asthma, swelling, vomiting, etc.
• गुल्मार्शःश्वासश्वयथुच्छर्द्यादिभिः: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गुल्म (प्रातिपदिक) + अर्शस् (प्रातिपदिक) + श्वास (प्रातिपदिक) + श्वयथु (प्रातिपदिक) + छर्दि (प्रातिपदिक) + आदि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया, बहुवचन; द्वन्द्वसमासः + ‘आदि’ (etc.): ‘with abdominal tumor, piles, asthma, swelling, vomiting, etc.’

• अनेकधा: in many ways
• अनेकधा: Kriya-viseshana (Adverb/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अनेकधा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb: manner)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (teaching Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Examples of bodily afflictions (śārīra-tāpa) as part of ādhyātmika duḥkha

Teaching: Ethical

Quality: clinical and enumerative

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: The body is a locus of innumerable diseases and pains, prompting dispassion and the search for the imperishable.

Vedantic Theme: Maya

Application: Use contemplation of bodily fragility to reduce attachment, while maintaining dharmic care of health as an instrument for sādhana.

Vishishtadvaita: The catalog of bodily suffering supports vairāgya toward prakṛti while preserving the jīva’s worth as the Lord’s śeṣa (dependent), meant for devotion beyond bodily identification.

FAQs

What is the significance of listing diseases in this part of the Vishnu Purana?

It underscores the inherent fragility of embodied existence, encouraging dispassion (vairāgya) and a turn toward liberation beyond the body.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the human condition here?

By enumerating concrete bodily afflictions, he shows that worldly life is pervaded by unavoidable suffering, a backdrop for seeking the Supreme Reality.

The theological importance of Lord Vishnu in this context?

The verse implicitly contrasts transient bodily distress with Vishnu as the enduring refuge—mokṣa lies in aligning with the Supreme Lord, not in perfecting the perishable body.