Shloka 40

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

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

Devanagari script

विवर्तमानताराक्षिर् हस्तपादं मुहुः क्षिपन् संशुष्यमाणताल्वोष्ठपुटो घुरघुरायते

Transliteration

vivartamānatārākṣir hastapādaṃ muhuḥ kṣipan saṃśuṣyamāṇatālvoṣṭhapuṭo ghuraghurāyate

Translation

His pupils roll and whirl; again and again he flings his hands and feet. As his palate and lips grow parched, a hoarse, rattling sound rises from his throat.

Word by Word

• विवर्तमान: rolling about, turning
• विवर्तमान: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वि√वृत् (धातु)
• Form: शानच्-प्रत्यय (present middle participle/आत्मनेपदीय-प्रायः); पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; एकवचन (masc. nom. sg.)

• तारा: pupil (of the eye)
• तारा: Sambandha (Compound member/समासाङ्ग)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तारा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; प्रातिपदिक (as compound member; 'pupil/star')

• अक्षि: eye
• अक्षि: Sambandha (Compound member/समासाङ्ग)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अक्षि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रातिपदिक (as compound member)

• विवर्तमानताराक्षिः: one whose pupils/eyes are rolling
• विवर्तमानताराक्षिः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: विवर्तमान + तारा + अक्षि (प्रातिपदिक-समूह)
• Form: बहुव्रीहिसमास (यस्य ताराक्षी विवर्तमानम्); पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; एकवचन; विशेषण

• हस्तपादम्: hands and feet
• हस्तपादम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: हस्त + पाद (प्रातिपदिक-समूह)
• Form: इतरेतर-द्वन्द्वसमास; नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया; एकवचन (neuter; accusative singular; collective)

• मुहुः: again and again
• मुहुः: Sambandha (Adverbial/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: मुहुः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; पुनःपुनरर्थक (repeatedly)

• क्षिपन्: throwing, jerking
• क्षिपन्: Karta (Agent/कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √क्षिप् (धातु)
• Form: शतृ-प्रत्यय (present active participle); पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; एकवचन (masc. nom. sg.)

• संशुष्यमाण: drying up
• संशुष्यमाण: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सम्√शुष् (धातु)
• Form: शानच्-प्रत्यय (present passive participle); पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; एकवचन (masc. nom. sg.)

• तालु: palate
• तालु: Sambandha (Compound member/समासाङ्ग)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तालु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रातिपदिक (as compound member)

• ओष्ठ: lip
• ओष्ठ: Sambandha (Compound member/समासाङ्ग)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ओष्ठ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रातिपदिक (as compound member)

• पुटः: cavity, fold, enclosure
• पुटः: Sambandha (Compound member/समासाङ्ग)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुट (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; एकवचन (masc. nominative singular)

• ताल्वोष्ठपुटः: the mouth-cavity of palate and lips
• ताल्वोष्ठपुटः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तालु + ओष्ठ + पुट (प्रातिपदिक-समूह)
• Form: तत्पुरुषसमास (षष्ठी/कर्मधारय-प्रायः: तालु-ओष्ठयोः पुटः); पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; एकवचन

• संशुष्यमाणताल्वोष्ठपुटः: one whose palate-and-lip cavity is drying up
• संशुष्यमाणताल्वोष्ठपुटः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: संशुष्यमाण + ताल्वोष्ठपुट (प्रातिपदिक-समूह)
• Form: बहुव्रीहिसमास (यस्य ताल्वोष्ठपुटः संशुष्यमाणः); पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; एकवचन; विशेषण

• घुरघुरायते: rattles, makes a gurgling sound
• घुरघुरायते: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: घुरघुराय (धातु/नामधातु)
• Form: लट् (वर्तमान); प्रथमपुरुष; एकवचन; आत्मनेपद (present; 3rd sg; middle)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Visible signs of imminent death: rolling pupils, flailing limbs, parched mouth, death-rattle

Teaching: Ethical

Quality: revealing

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: The dying process strips away bodily control and dignity, revealing the inevitability of decay; therefore one should seek the imperishable refuge before the senses fail.

Vedantic Theme: Moksha

Application: Keep a simple, repeatable practice (Hari-nāma, short prayers) that can be maintained even when breath and speech weaken; prepare end-of-life spiritual supports.

Vishishtadvaita: Encourages dependence on the Lord’s grace when personal agency collapses—central to prapatti in Śrī Vaiṣṇava thought (the Lord as rakṣaka when the jīva is akincana).

FAQs

What is the significance of these physical symptoms in the Vishnu Purana?

They depict the inevitable breakdown of the embodied condition—an experiential reminder of impermanence that supports the Purana’s teaching to seek the imperishable reality beyond the body.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the human condition through such descriptions?

By narrating concrete signs of bodily distress and decline, he makes samsara tangible and urges discernment (viveka) between the transient body and the enduring spiritual goal.

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

Against the backdrop of decay and mortality, Vishnu is implied as the stable, supreme refuge—one turns from the perishable to the eternal ground of order and liberation.