Shloka 12

Vāsudeva’s Upadeśa: The Inner Enemy and the Indra–Vṛtra Precedent (आत्मशत्रु-बोधः; इन्द्र-वृत्रोपाख्यानम्)

Devanagari script

व्याप्ते ज्योतिषि वृत्रेण रूपेडथ विषये हते

Transliteration

vyāpte jyotiṣi vṛtreṇa rūpeḍatha viṣaye hate

Translation

Vāyu dit : «Lorsque le domaine lumineux fut envahi par Vṛtra, et que celui-ci fut ensuite abattu dans la sphère même de la manifestation, l’ordre des mondes fut rétabli.»

Word by Word

• व्याप्ते: when/where (it was) pervaded, in the pervaded state
• व्याप्ते: Adhikarana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: व्याप्त (√व्याप्)
• Form: Neuter, Locative, Singular

• ज्योतिषि: in the light / in the luminary
• ज्योतिषि: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: ज्योतिस्
• Form: Neuter, Locative, Singular

• वृत्रेण: by Vṛtra
• वृत्रेण: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: वृत्र
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Singular

• रूपेण: by (his) form / in the form
• रूपेण: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: रूप
• Form: Neuter, Instrumental, Singular

• अथ: then
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अथ

• विषये: in the region / in the domain
• विषये: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: विषय
• Form: Masculine, Locative, Singular

• हते: when/where (he/it was) slain
• हते: Adhikarana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: हत (√हन्)
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Locative, Singular

Speaker

वायुदेव उवाच

Characters & Entities

• वायुदेव (Vāyu)
• वृत्र (Vṛtra)
• ज्योतिस् (jyotis, luminous realm/light)
• विषय (viṣaya, domain/sphere)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse frames the slaying of Vṛtra as more than a battle: it is the removal of an obstruction that had overwhelmed the luminous order. Ethically, it presents rightful force as that which restores balance and protects the world’s proper functioning.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vāyu recalls a moment when Vṛtra had spread over the realm of light (jyotis). After Vṛtra is killed within the ‘sphere’ (viṣaya), the implication is that the blockage is cleared and the cosmic situation returns to order.