Shloka 62

अविद्याबीज-निरूपणं, योगस्वरूप-उपदेशः, मूर्तहरिधारणा-समाधि, जनकवंशीय-राजर्षिसंवादः

Devanagari script

यया क्षेत्रज्ञशक्तिः सा वेष्टिता नृप सर्वगा संसारतापान् अखिलान् अवाप्नोत्य् अतिसंततान्

Transliteration

yayā kṣetrajñaśaktiḥ sā veṣṭitā nṛpa sarvagā saṃsāratāpān akhilān avāpnoty atisaṃtatān

Translation

O King, when that all-pervading power of the Kṣetrajña is enveloped by coverings, it comes to experience in full all the torments of saṃsāra, endlessly multiplied through the round of transmigration.

Word by Word

• यया: by which
• यया: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन; सम्बन्धे ‘by which/with which’

• क्षेत्रज्ञशक्तिः: the kṣetrajña-power
• क्षेत्रज्ञशक्तिः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: क्षेत्रज्ञ (प्रातिपदिक) + शक्ति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (क्षेत्रज्ञस्य शक्तिः)

• सा: that (she/it)
• सा: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; अन्वय-प्रदर्शक सर्वनाम

• वेष्टिता: is enveloped/covered
• वेष्टिता: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वेष्ट् (धातु) → वेष्टित (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्तः (क्त), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; विधेय-विशेषणम् (सा)

• नृप: O king
• नृप: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नृप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन-विभक्ति (Vocative), एकवचन

• सर्वगा: all-pervading
• सर्वगा: Visheshana (Adjective/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्वग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; विशेषणम् (सा)

• संसारतापान्: the sufferings of saṃsāra
• संसारतापान्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: संसार (प्रातिपदिक) + ताप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (2nd/Accusative), बहुवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (संसारस्य तापाः)

• अखिलान्: all
• अखिलान्: Visheshana (Adjective/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अखिल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, बहुवचन; विशेषणम् (तापान्)

• अवाप्नोति: attains/experiences
• अवाप्नोति: Kriya (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: अव + आप् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• अतिसंततान्: exceedingly intense/extended
• अतिसंततान्: Visheshana (Adjective/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अति (उपसर्ग/अव्यय) + संतत (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, बहुवचन; विशेषणम् (तापान्); ‘very extended/overwhelming’

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (addressing a king within the narrative frame; traditionally the teaching is delivered by Parāśara to Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: How the all-pervading kṣetrajña experiences saṃsāra when enveloped by avidyā/karma.

Teaching: Philosophical

Quality: revealing

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: When the indwelling kṣetrajña is covered by avidyā, it undergoes the multiplied torments of saṃsāra despite being all-pervading in nature.

Vedantic Theme: Maya

Application: Cultivate dispassion toward transient experiences and seek the removal of avidyā through devotion, ethical living, and steady contemplation.

Vishishtadvaita: The jīva is inherently conscious and pervasive as a dependent self, yet its knowledge is contracted by karma—bondage is a real condition removable by grace and right means.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Narayana

Bhakti Type: Shanta

Antaryamin: Yes

Jagat Karana: Yes

Characters & Entities

• Kṣetrajña (indwelling knower)
• Saṃsāra (cycle of rebirth)
• King (nṛpa)

FAQs

What is the significance of kṣetrajña-śakti in the Vishnu Purana?

This verse presents kṣetrajña-śakti as all-pervading consciousness that, when veiled by limiting factors, becomes the experiencer of every kind of saṃsāric suffering.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the cause of saṃsāra in this context?

He frames saṃsāra as the result of an 'envelopment' (veṣṭana) of the indwelling knower, after which the being undergoes the accumulated and continuous pains of worldly life.

What is the theological importance of Lord Vishnu here?

By implication consistent with Vaishnava Vedānta, the verse distinguishes the all-pervading conscious principle and its bondage; liberation is understood through Vishnu as the supreme ground and governor of cosmic order in which bondage and release are intelligible.