Shloka 15

वेदव्यासः, चातुर्होत्रम्, ऋग्वेदशाखाः

Vyāsa’s Veda-division and Ṛgveda lineages

Devanagari script

सो ऽयम् एको महावेदतरुस् तेन पृथक्कृतः चतुर्धा तु ततो जातं वेदपादपकाननम्

Transliteration

so 'yam eko mahāvedatarus tena pṛthakkṛtaḥ caturdhā tu tato jātaṃ vedapādapakānanam

Translation

अशा रीतीने तो एकच महावेद—जणू विशाल वृक्ष—त्याने चतुर्धा विभागला; आणि त्या विभागातून वेदाच्या शाखा-उपशाखांचे कानन उत्पन्न झाले।

Word by Word

सःhe/that

अयम्this

एकःone/single

महावेदतरुःthe great Veda-tree

तेनby him/thereby

पृथक्कृतःwas divided/separated

चतुर्धाinto four parts

तुindeed/and

ततःthereupon/from that

जातम्arose/was produced

वेदपादपकाननम्the forest of Veda-trees (i.e., the Vedas as branches)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)

Characters & Entities

Vyasa

Veda

FAQs

What is the significance of describing the Veda as a ‘great tree’ in the Vishnu Purana?

This verse frames revelation as one living source that can legitimately branch into many forms—four Vedas and numerous recensions—without losing its unity, emphasizing continuity of dharma through structured transmission.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the division of the Veda here?

Parāśara states that the originally single Veda was deliberately separated by Vyāsa into four, and that this act generated a wide spread of Vedic ‘limbs’—multiple branches of learning and recensional lineages.

The theological importance of Lord Vishnu in this context?

Even when Vishnu is not named in the line, the Purana’s theology treats the ordering of the Veda and dharma as part of the Supreme Lord’s governance of cosmic order—knowledge is preserved so beings can align with the ultimate reality Vishnu embodies.