Narada Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 4

Threefold Suffering, Twofold Knowledge, and the Definition of Bhagavān (Vāsudeva); Prelude to Keśidhvaja–Janaka Yoga

Devanagari script

निरस्तातिशयाह्लादसुखभावैकलक्षणा । भेषजं भगवत्प्राप्तिरैका चात्यंतिकी मता ॥ ४ ॥

Transliteration

nirastātiśayāhlādasukhabhāvaikalakṣaṇā | bheṣajaṃ bhagavatprāptiraikā cātyaṃtikī matā || 4 ||

Translation

അതിശയ ഉല്ലാസവും ചാഞ്ചല്യവും നീങ്ങിയ, ഏകരസ പരമാനന്ദസ്വഭാവനായ ഭഗവാന്റെ പ്രാപ്തിയേ—ഏകമാത്ര അത്യന്തിക (അനന്ത) ഔഷധമെന്ന് കരുതപ്പെടുന്നു.

Word by Word

• निरस्त-अतिशय-आह्लाद-सुख-भाव-एक-लक्षणा: having the single mark of happiness free from excessive exhilaration
• निरस्त-अतिशय-आह्लाद-सुख-भाव-एक-लक्षणा: Visheshana (विशेषण/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: निरस्त (कृदन्त; √रस्/√अस् with निर्-; ‘removed’) + अतिशय (प्रातिपदिक) + आह्लाद (प्रातिपदिक) + सुख (प्रातिपदिक) + भाव (प्रातिपदिक) + एक (प्रातिपदिक) + लक्षणा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: समास: बहुव्रीहि (possessive; ‘whose characteristic is a single state of happiness devoid of excessive exhilaration’); स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• भेषजम्: remedy
• भेषजम्: Pradhana (प्रधान/Predicate-noun)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भेषज (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन

• भगवत्-प्राप्तिः: attainment of the Lord
• भगवत्-प्राप्तिः: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भगवत् (प्रातिपदिक) + प्राप्ति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: समास: षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (‘attainment of the Lord’); स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• एका: one alone
• एका: Visheshana (विशेषण/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: एक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; विशेषण

• च: and
• च: Samuccaya (समुच्चय/Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चय-बोधक (conjunction)

• अत्यन्तिकी: ultimate, final
• अत्यन्तिकी: Visheshana (विशेषण/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अत्यन्तिक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; विशेषण

• मता: is held/considered
• मता: Kriya (क्रिया/Predicative verbal sense)
• Type: Verb
• Root: मत (कृदन्त; √मन् धातु)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (past passive participle) used predicatively; स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; ‘is considered’

Speaker

Sanatkumara (teaching Narada in the Moksha-Dharma section)

Vrata Kalpa

Vrata: none

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: bhakti

Characters & Entities

• Bhagavan
• Vishnu

FAQs

What is the spiritual significance of this verse in Narada Purana?

It declares that the only truly final cure for the soul’s suffering is Bhagavat-prāpti—direct attainment of the Lord—because it culminates in a stable, unsurpassed bliss beyond worldly fluctuations.

How does this verse explain the path of devotion (Bhakti)?

By calling Bhagavān’s attainment the “medicine,” the verse frames devotion as therapeutic and liberating: bhakti is not merely emotional uplift, but the means to reach a single, steady bliss grounded in the Lord.

What practical Vedic knowledge (Vedanga) is highlighted here?

No specific Vedāṅga (like Vyākaraṇa, Jyotiṣa, or Kalpa) is taught in this verse; it is a Mokṣa-Dharma statement prioritizing the soteriological goal—Bhagavān’s attainment—over technical ritual or linguistic detail.