Shloka 46

उपसंहारः, वैष्णवपुराण-प्रशंसा, फलश्रुति, परम्परा-प्रवहः (पाठ-श्रवण-फलम्)

Devanagari script

कम्बलाय च तेनोक्तम् एलापत्राय तेन वै

Transliteration

kambalāya ca tenoktam elāpatrāya tena vai

Translation

He declared it to Kambala; and indeed, in the same way, to Elāpatra as well.

Word by Word

• कम्बलाय: to Kambala
• कम्बलाय: Sampradana (Recipient/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कम्बल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी (सम्प्रदान/दत्ते), एकवचन (Dative singular)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-निपात (conjunction)

• तेन: by him / by that (person)
• तेन: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (करण), एकवचन (Instrumental singular)

• उक्तम्: was said
• उक्तम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वच् (धातु) + क्त (कृदन्त-प्रत्यय)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past passive participle), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; (said/spoken)

• एलापत्राय: to Elāpatra
• एलापत्राय: Sampradana (Recipient/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: एलापत्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: समास: षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (एलायाः पत्रम् → एलापत्र); पुंलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी, एकवचन (Dative singular)

• तेन: by him
• तेन: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचन (Instrumental singular)

• वै: indeed
• वै: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: वै (अव्यय)
• Form: निश्चयार्थक-निपात (emphatic particle)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Continuation of the teaching’s lineage among Nāgas

Teaching: Devotional

Quality: matter-of-fact, preservative

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Knowledge is a trust (nyāsa) to be responsibly handed onward to worthy recipients.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Treat spiritual learning as a discipline: memorize, verify sources, and transmit with integrity.

Vishishtadvaita: The Lord’s teachings are preserved through qualified recipients, ensuring correct understanding of His auspicious attributes (kalyāṇa-guṇas).

Vaishnava Theology

Bhakti Type: Shanta

Characters & Entities

• Kambala
• Elāpatra
• Nāgas

FAQs

What is the significance of naming Kambala and Elāpatra in the Vishnu Purana?

It situates them within the Purāṇic Nāga catalog, reinforcing the ordered mapping of beings and realms (especially Pātāla) under the cosmic administration ultimately grounded in Vishnu.

How does Sage Parāśara explain such lists and transmissions to Maitreya?

Parāśara narrates in a chain-of-transmission style—“it was said by him to X and to Y”—to authenticate the tradition and preserve cosmological and genealogical memory.

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

Even when Vishnu is not explicitly named, the structured enumeration of realms and lineages implies a cosmos sustained by a supreme, sovereign principle—Vishnu as the ground of order and continuity.