Shloka 8

शरद्वर्णनं, योगोपमा, तथा गोवर्धन-यज्ञप्रवर्तनम्

Devanagari script

शनकैः शनकैस् तीरं तत्यजुश् च जलाशयाः ममत्वं क्षेत्रपुत्रादिरूढम् उच्चैर् यथा बुधाः

Transliteration

śanakaiḥ śanakais tīraṃ tatyajuś ca jalāśayāḥ mamatvaṃ kṣetraputrādirūḍham uccair yathā budhāḥ

Translation

湖や水がめが少しずつ岸を離れてゆくように、賢者もまた、田畑や子らなどに深く根づいた「我がもの」という執着を、次第に捨て去ってゆく。

Word by Word

• शनकैः: slowly
• शनकैः: Kriya-vishesana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: शनकैः (अव्यय)
• Form: क्रियाविशेषण-अव्ययम् (adverb)

• शनकैः: little by little
• शनकैः: Kriya-vishesana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: शनकैः (अव्यय)
• Form: क्रियाविशेषण-अव्ययम् (adverb), पुनरुक्तिः (repetition for emphasis)

• तीरम्: the shore/bank
• तीरम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तीर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन

• तत्यजुः: they abandoned
• तत्यजुः: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: त्यज् (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect/परोक्शभूत), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), बहुवचन; परस्मैपदम्

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

• जल-आशयाः: lakes/ponds (water-reservoirs)
• जल-आशयाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: जल (प्रातिपदिक) + आशय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), बहुवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (जलस्य आशयः)

• ममत्वम्: sense of ‘mine’/possessiveness
• ममत्वम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ममत्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन

• क्षेत्र-पुत्र-आदि-रूढम्: rooted in field, sons, etc.
• क्षेत्र-पुत्र-आदि-रूढम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: क्षेत्र (प्रातिपदिक) + पुत्र (प्रातिपदिक) + आदि (प्रातिपदिक) + रूढ (कृदन्त; √रुह्)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; बहुपद-तत्पुरुषः; भूतकृदन्त-विशेषणम् (past participle adjective)

• उच्चैः: high/upwards; strongly
• उच्चैः: Kriya-vishesana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: उच्चैः (अव्यय)
• Form: क्रियाविशेषण-अव्ययम् (adverb)

• यथा: as/like
• यथा: Sambandha (Comparative marker/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यथा (अव्यय)
• Form: उपमा-अव्ययम् (comparative particle)

• बुधाः: the wise
• बुधाः: Upamana (Standard of comparison/उपमान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: बुध (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), बहुवचन

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (teaching Maitreya)

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Wise persons relinquish the entrenched sense of ‘mine’ progressively, as water slowly withdraws from a shoreline.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Practice staged renunciation: simplify possessions, loosen identity around family/property, and redirect attachment toward God-centered duty.

Vishishtadvaita: Detachment is not nihilistic; it reorders attachment from finite ‘mine’ to the Supreme as the true owner and inner ruler.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Para-Brahman

Bhakti Type: Shanta

FAQs

What is the significance of mamatva (the sense of ‘mine’) in the Vishnu Purana?

This verse treats mamatva as a deeply rooted bondage—especially toward property and family—that must be steadily relinquished for spiritual clarity and liberation.

How does Sage Parāśara explain renunciation in this context?

He frames it as gradual: like water slowly leaving a shoreline, the wise loosen attachment step by step rather than through abrupt, unstable rejection.

The theological importance of Lord Vishnu in this context?

Detachment is presented as a prerequisite for turning from transient ‘mine-ness’ toward the enduring Supreme Reality—Vishnu—who alone is ultimate refuge beyond worldly ownership.