Shloka 74

Yoga-Sleep, Cosmic Dissolution, and the Lotus of Creation

with Mārkaṇḍeya’s Vision

Devanagari script

महतो रजसो मध्ये महार्णवसमस्य वै । वारिजाक्षो महाबाहुरक्षयं ब्रह्म यद्विदुः

Transliteration

mahato rajaso madhye mahārṇavasamasya vai | vārijākṣo mahābāhurakṣayaṃ brahma yadviduḥ

Translation

Di tengah rajas yang maha luas, laksana samudra kosmik yang agung, ada Dia yang bermata teratai dan berlengan perkasa; Dia itulah yang oleh para bijak dikenal sebagai Brahman yang tak binasa.

Word by Word

• mahataḥ: from the great (one)
• mahataḥ: Apādāna (अपादान)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mahat (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Ablative (5th/पञ्चमी), Singular (एकवचन); adjective used substantively: "from the great"

• rajasaḥ: of rajas (dust/guṇa of activity)
• rajasaḥ: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rajas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Genitive (6th/षष्ठी), Singular; dependent genitive with madhye

• madhye: in the midst
• madhye: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: madhya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Locative (7th/सप्तमी), Singular; adverbial locative

• mahā-arṇava-samasya: (of) equal to the great ocean
• mahā-arṇava-samasya: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mahā (उपसर्ग/पूर्वपद) + arṇava (प्रातिपदिक) + sama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Genitive (6th/षष्ठी), Singular; tatpuruṣa: "mahārṇavena samaḥ" (equal to the great ocean) used as qualifier (genitive agreeing with rajasaḥ)

• vai: indeed
• vai: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vai (अव्यय)
• Form: Particle (निपात), emphatic/indeed

• vārija-akṣaḥ: the lotus-eyed one
• vārija-akṣaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vārija (प्रातिपदिक) + akṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular; bahuvrīhi: "vārije akṣī yasya" (whose eyes are like lotuses)

• mahā-bāhuḥ: the mighty-armed one
• mahā-bāhuḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā (पूर्वपद) + bāhu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular; bahuvrīhi: "mahāntau bāhū yasya" (whose arms are great)

• akṣayam: imperishable
• akṣayam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: akṣaya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular; adjective qualifying brahma

• brahma: Brahman
• brahma: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular; object of viduḥ

• yat: which
• yat: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular; relative pronoun referring to brahma

• viduḥ: they know
• viduḥ: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √vid (विद्, धातु)
• Form: Perfect (लिट्), 3rd Person (प्रथमपुरुष), Plural (बहुवचन); parasmaipada

Speaker

Unspecified (narrative voice; speaker not explicit from the single verse excerpt)

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: adbhuta

Geographic Context

Type: celestial_realm

Sandhi Resolution Notes

Sandhi Resolution Notes: mahārṇavasamasya = mahā + arṇava + samasya; vārijākṣaḥ = vārija + akṣaḥ; mahābāhuḥ = mahā + bāhuḥ; mahābāhurakṣayam = mahābāhuḥ + akṣayam; yadviduḥ = yat + viduḥ.

Characters & Entities

• Viṣṇu (Vārijākṣa)

FAQs

What does this verse teach about the nature of Brahman in the Padma Purana?

It identifies the lotus-eyed, mighty-armed Lord (Viṣṇu) as akṣaya (imperishable) Brahman, presenting the Absolute as a personal divine reality within creation imagery.

Why does the verse use the image of a “great ocean” (mahārṇava)?

The “great ocean” is a Purāṇic symbol for the undifferentiated cosmic state at creation, emphasizing vastness and primordial depth from which the divine presence is known.

What is the ethical or spiritual takeaway for a devotee?

The verse encourages steadiness of faith: the wise recognize an unchanging, imperishable divine principle even amid the shifting conditions of the material cosmos.