Narada Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 78

The Characteristics of Devotion to Hari

Devanagari script

इति श्रीबृहन्नारदीयपुराणे पूर्वभागे प्रथमपादे हरिभक्ति लक्षणं नामचतुस्त्रिंशोऽध्यायः ॥ ३४ ॥

Transliteration

iti śrībṛhannāradīyapurāṇe pūrvabhāge prathamapāde haribhakti lakṣaṇaṃ nāmacatustriṃśo'dhyāyaḥ || 34 ||

Translation

ഇങ്ങനെ ശ്രീ ബൃഹന്നാരദീയപുരാണത്തിന്റെ പൂർവഭാഗത്തിലെ പ്രഥമപാദത്തിൽ ‘ഹരിഭക്തി-ലക്ഷണം’ എന്ന മുപ്പത്തിനാലാം അധ്യായം സമാപ്തമായി।

Word by Word

• इति: thus
• इति: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/discourse marker)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इति (अव्यय)
• Form: उपसंहारार्थक-निपात (quotative/concluding particle)

• श्री-बृहन्-नारदीय-पुराणे: in the venerable Brihan-Naradiya Purana
• श्री-बृहन्-नारदीय-पुराणे: Adhikarana (अधिकरण/Locative)
• Type: Noun
• Root: श्री (प्रातिपदिक) + बृहन् (प्रातिपदिक) + नारदीय (प्रातिपदिक) + पुराण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन; बहुपद-समासः (श्रीमत् बृहन्नारदीयं पुराणम्)

• पूर्व-भागे: in the first part
• पूर्व-भागे: Adhikarana (अधिकरण/Locative)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पूर्व (प्रातिपदिक) + भाग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन; कर्मधारय/तत्पुरुष-प्रयोगः ‘पूर्वः भागः’

• प्रथम-पादे: in the first quarter/section
• प्रथम-पादे: Adhikarana (अधिकरण/Locative)
• Type: Noun
• Root: प्रथम (प्रातिपदिक) + पाद (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन; कर्मधारय-प्रयोगः ‘प्रथमः पादः’

• हरि-भक्ति-लक्षणम्: the characteristics of devotion to Hari
• हरि-भक्ति-लक्षणम्: Karta (कर्ता/Subject; title)
• Type: Noun
• Root: हरि (प्रातिपदिक) + भक्ति (प्रातिपदिक) + लक्षण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (हरेः भक्तेः लक्षणम्)

• नाम: named
• नाम: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/naming marker)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: नाम (अव्यय/निपात)
• Form: नाम-शब्दः शीर्षक-निर्देशक (particle indicating ‘called/named’)

• चतुस्त्रिंशः: thirty-fourth
• चतुस्त्रिंशः: Visheshana (विशेषण/qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: चतुस्त्रिंशत् (संख्यावाचक-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; क्रमवाचक-विशेषणं ‘अध्यायः’

• अध्यायः: chapter
• अध्यायः: Karta (कर्ता/Subject; colophon)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अध्याय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

Speaker

Sūta (narrative colophon/sectional closure)

Vrata Kalpa

Vrata: none

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: bhakti

Characters & Entities

• Hari
• Śrī Bṛhan-Nāradīya Purāṇa

FAQs

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

This is a colophon verse marking the completion of Adhyāya 34, formally sealing the teaching-unit on the defining marks (lakṣaṇa) of devotion to Hari within the Purāṇa’s structured transmission.

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

It does not add new doctrine; it identifies the just-completed chapter as devoted to “Hari-bhakti-lakṣaṇa,” signaling that the preceding discourse defined and characterized authentic devotion to Vishnu (Hari).

What practical Vedic knowledge (Vedanga) is highlighted here?

No Vedāṅga topic is taught in this closing formula; it is a textual/archival marker used to organize chapters and aid accurate citation in Purāṇic recitation and manuscript traditions.