Shloka 20
शरद्वर्णनं, योगोपमा, तथा गोवर्धन-यज्ञप्रवर्तनम्
तद् वृष्टिजनितं सस्यं वयम् अन्ये च देहिनः वर्तयामोपभुञ्जानास् तर्पयामश् च देवताः
tad vṛṣṭijanitaṃ sasyaṃ vayam anye ca dehinaḥ vartayāmopabhuñjānās tarpayāmaś ca devatāḥ
De cette pluie naît le grain ; en le consommant, nous et tous les êtres incarnés subsistons, et par lui nous rassasions aussi les dieux.
Sage Parāśara (teaching Maitreya in the main dialogue frame of the Vishnu Purana)
FAQs
This verse presents rain as the origin of food and food as the support of embodied life, showing a sacred chain of dependence that keeps the world functioning in harmony.
Parāśara describes humans and other beings living on rain-born crops and, through that sustenance, reciprocally “nourishing” the devas—an image of mutual maintenance within dharma.
Even when not named in the verse, the Vishnu Purana frames such cosmic reciprocity as operating under the Supreme Lord’s sovereignty—Vishnu as the sustaining Reality behind the order that feeds beings and empowers the gods.