Shloka 79
अविद्याबीज-निरूपणं, योगस्वरूप-उपदेशः, मूर्तहरिधारणा-समाधि, जनकवंशीय-राजर्षिसंवादः
तच् च मूर्तं हरे रूपं यादृक् चिन्त्यं नराधिप तच् छ्रूयताम् अनाधारे धारणा नोपपद्यते
tac ca mūrtaṃ hare rūpaṃ yādṛk cintyaṃ narādhipa tac chrūyatām anādhāre dhāraṇā nopapadyate
And now, O lord of men, hear what that embodied form of Hari is—how it is to be contemplated; for without a support, dhāraṇā cannot truly arise.
Sage Parāśara (teaching in dialogue to Maitreya; addressing the listener as ‘narādhipa’ in the verse’s vocative style)
Speaker: Parasara
Topic: Description (dhyāna-lakṣaṇa) of Hari’s embodied form to be contemplated as the support for dhāraṇā.
Teaching: Devotional
Quality: methodical
Concept: Concentration requires a definite support; therefore one should contemplate Hari’s formed, describable embodiment.
Vedantic Theme: Dharma
Application: Use a consistent dhyāna-iconography (from scripture or a chosen iṣṭa-mūrti) to stabilize meditation and reduce mental drift.
Vishishtadvaita: Affirms saguna-upāsanā as a legitimate and necessary means: the Lord’s form is accessible without denying His transcendence.
Vishnu Form: Hari
Bhakti Type: Shanta
FAQs
This verse states that dhāraṇā (steady concentration) is not workable without an ādhāra—an object/support—therefore the Purana proceeds to define Hari’s meditable form as the practical basis for yogic focus.
He frames the instruction as a sequence: first establish the meditable ‘embodied form of Hari’ to serve as the support, because only then can the mind be gathered into dhāraṇā.
Vishnu (Hari) is presented as the supreme focus of practice: devotion and yogic concentration converge on his form, aligning with Vaishnava theology that the Highest Reality is approachable through contemplative worship.