Shloka 51

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

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

Devanagari script

पुनश् च गर्भे भवति जायते च पुनर् नरः गर्भे विलीयते भूयो जायमानो ऽस्तम् एति च

Transliteration

punaś ca garbhe bhavati jāyate ca punar naraḥ garbhe vilīyate bhūyo jāyamāno 'stam eti ca

Translation

Again he enters the womb, and again he is born; again the human being dissolves back into the womb. Repeatedly coming to birth, he again goes to his setting—passing away once more.

Word by Word

• पुनः: again
• पुनः: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Adverbial modifier)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: पुनः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; पुनरावृत्त्यर्थक क्रियाविशेषण (adverb of repetition: again)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयबोधक निपात (conjunction: and)

• गर्भे: in the womb
• गर्भे: Adhikaraṇa (Location)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गर्भ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; सप्तमी विभक्ति (7th/Locative), एकवचन (singular)

• भवति: becomes / comes to be
• भवति: Kriyā (Predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भू (धातु)
• Form: लट् लकार (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन (singular); परस्मैपद

• जायते: is born
• जायते: Kriyā (Predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: जन् (धातु)
• Form: लट् लकार (Present), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; आत्मनेपद

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयबोधक निपात (and)

• पुनः: again
• पुनः: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Adverbial modifier)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: पुनः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; पुनरावृत्त्यर्थक क्रियाविशेषण (again)

• नरः: a man / person
• नरः: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• गर्भे: in the womb
• गर्भे: Adhikaraṇa (Location)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गर्भ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; सप्तमी विभक्ति, एकवचन

• विलीयते: dissolves / merges
• विलीयते: Kriyā (Predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वि+ली (धातु)
• Form: लट् लकार (Present), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; आत्मनेपद

• भूयः: again / once more
• भूयः: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Adverbial modifier)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: भूयस् (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; पुनरर्थक क्रियाविशेषण (once more, again)

• जायमानः: being born
• जायमानः: Karta (Subject; participial)
• Type: Verb
• Root: जन् (धातु) + शानच् (कृदन्त प्रत्यय)
• Form: वर्तमानकाले शानच्-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (present middle participle); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा विभक्ति, एकवचन

• अस्तम्: to setting / to end
• अस्तम्: Gati/Karma (Goal/Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अस्त (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया विभक्ति (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; क्रियाविशेषणवत् (as goal: to setting/destruction)

• एति: goes
• एति: Kriyā (Predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: इ (धातु)
• Form: लट् लकार (Present), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयबोधक निपात (and)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (teaching Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Nature of saṃsāra and the inevitability of repeated birth and death; grounds for vairāgya and mokṣa.

Teaching: Philosophical

Quality: authoritative

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Embodied existence is a repetitive cycle of conception, birth, and death, so attachment to bodily continuity is misplaced.

Vedantic Theme: Moksha

Application: Contemplate impermanence daily to loosen clinging and prioritize sādhana aimed at liberation rather than mere life-extension.

Vishishtadvaita: The jīva is a real, continuing self that transmigrates until it attains the Lord; liberation is release from repeated embodiment, not annihilation.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Para-Brahman

Bhakti Type: Shanta

Characters & Entities

• Jiva (individual self)
• Garbha (womb)
• Samsara (cycle of rebirth)

FAQs

What is the significance of repeated birth and death in the Vishnu Purana?

This verse compresses the entire samsaric loop—entering the womb, being born, and dying again—highlighting the weariness of conditioned existence and the need to seek liberation beyond repetition.

How does Sage Parāśara explain samsara in this passage?

Parāśara presents samsara as a recurring process with no final satisfaction: the jiva repeatedly takes embodiment (birth) and repeatedly reaches “setting” (death), implying that freedom lies in transcending this cycle.

The theological importance of Lord Vishnu in this context?

By emphasizing the endless recurrence of embodied life, the text implicitly points toward Vishnu as the supreme refuge and ultimate ground—realization of whom leads beyond repeated birth and death.