Shloka 30

अक्रूर-सत्कारः, मथुरायात्रा-विरहः, यमुनातटे दिव्यदर्शनम्, चतुर्व्यूह-नमस्कारः

Devanagari script

अक्रूरः क्रूरहृदयः शीघ्रं प्रेरयते हयान् एवम् आर्तासु योषित्सु घृणा कस्य न जायते

Transliteration

akrūraḥ krūrahṛdayaḥ śīghraṃ prerayate hayān evam ārtāsu yoṣitsu ghṛṇā kasya na jāyate

Translation

残酷な心のアクルーラは、馬を急き立てて走らせる。かくも苦しむ女たちを見て、誰の胸に憐れみが起こらぬだろうか。

Word by Word

अक्रूरःAkrūra

क्रूरहृदयःcruel-hearted

शीघ्रम्quickly

प्रेरयतेdrives/urges on

हयान्horses

एवम्thus

आर्तासुamong the distressed

योषित्सुwomen

घृणाpity/compassion

कस्यof whom

नnot

जायतेarises/is born

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)

Characters & Entities

Akrura

Women (yoṣit)

FAQs

What is the significance of compassion (ghṛṇā) in this Vishnu Purana verse?

The verse frames compassion as an almost universal, spontaneous dharmic response when one witnesses innocent suffering—especially the visible distress of women—thereby judging cruelty as a moral deviation.

How does Sage Parāśara explain moral perception through narrative in this context?

By contrasting Akrūra’s harsh urgency with the women’s anguish, Parāśara uses the episode to evoke ethical discernment: dharma is recognized not only through rules but through the heart’s response to suffering.

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

Even when Vishnu is not named in the line, the Purāṇa’s underlying theology presents dharma and compassion as expressions of the cosmic order sustained by Vishnu, the supreme sovereign who upholds the world’s moral balance.