Shloka 8

Prahlada's Instructions to Bali — Prahlada’s Instructions to Bali on Vishnu Worship, Monthly Gifts, and Building Hari’s Temple

Devanagari script

तानर्चयेन्नरो भक्त्या ब्राह्मणान् विष्णुतत्परः एवमाह हरिः पूर्वं ब्राह्मणा मामकी तनुः

Transliteration

tānarcayennaro bhaktyā brāhmaṇān viṣṇutatparaḥ evamāha hariḥ pūrvaṃ brāhmaṇā māmakī tanuḥ

Translation

വിഷ്ണുപരായണനായ മനുഷ്യൻ ഭക്തിയോടെ ബ്രാഹ്മണരെ അർച്ചിക്കണം. ഹരി മുൻപ് പ്രസ്താവിച്ചു— ‘ബ്രാഹ്മണർ എന്റെ തന്നെ ശരീരമാണ്.’

Speakers

• Hari (Viṣṇu) is cited as the authoritative speaker (‘thus Hari said formerly’); immediate narrator not specified in excerpt.

Primary Deities

• Vishnu (Hari)

Key Themes

• Bhakti expressed as service (sevā) to brāhmaṇas
• Authority of divine speech (Hari-vacana)
• Embodiment theology (brāhmaṇas as Viṣṇu’s tanu)
• Social-religious ethics

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

{ "primaryRasa": "shanta", "secondaryRasa": "adbhuta", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }

FAQs

What does it mean that ‘brāhmaṇas are my body’?

It is a theological metaphor asserting intimate identification: Viṣṇu’s protection of dharma operates through Vedic transmission, ritual expertise, and teaching—functions traditionally assigned to brāhmaṇas. The statement sacralizes respectful support of that dharmic infrastructure.

Is ‘arcana’ here ritual worship or social honor?

Arcana can include formal offerings, but in dharma passages it often broadens to hospitality, gifts, respectful speech, and service. The emphasis is on bhakti-informed reverence rather than a single ritual procedure.

How does this relate to Vaiṣṇava practice?

The verse frames brāhmaṇa-honor as a component of Vaiṣṇava devotion (viṣṇu-tatparatā). It integrates personal devotion with social dharma, presenting them as mutually reinforcing.