Shloka 77
आत्यन्तिक-लयहेतुः: तापत्रय-विवेचनम् तथा ‘भगवान्/वासुदेव’ शब्दार्थः
Threefold Suffering and the Path to Final Liberation; Meaning of Bhagavān and Vāsudeva
तत्र पूज्यपदार्थोक्तिपरिभाषासमन्वितः शब्दो ऽयं नोपचारेण अन्यत्र ह्य् उपचारतः
tatra pūjyapadārthoktiparibhāṣāsamanvitaḥ śabdo 'yaṃ nopacāreṇa anyatra hy upacārataḥ
त्या संदर्भात हा शब्द—पूज्य व योग्य अर्थ दर्शविणाऱ्या परिभाषेसह—लाक्षणिक नाही; अन्यत्र तो तो केवळ उपचारानेच वापरला जातो।
Sage Parāśara (teaching Maitreya)
Speaker: Parasara
Topic: How “Bhagavān” should be understood as primary (non-figurative) only for the truly venerable supreme referent
Teaching: Philosophical
Quality: analytical
Concept: “Bhagavān” is to be taken in its primary sense only for the supremely worship-worthy reality; elsewhere it is merely figurative usage.
Vedantic Theme: Brahman
Application: Use discernment in theological language—reserve ultimate predicates for the Supreme, while honoring others without conflating levels of divinity.
Vishishtadvaita: Supports graded ontology: the Supreme Person uniquely bears absolute lordship, while other ‘lords’ are so only by upacāra (dependent designation).
Vishnu Form: Vasudeva
Bhakti Type: Shanta
Vyuha Form: Vasudeva
FAQs
This verse sets a hermeneutic rule: in the given doctrinal context, the key term must be taken in its primary sense, while in other contexts it may be applied only figuratively.
He indicates that a technical definition (paribhāṣā) governs the word’s meaning—especially when it points to a worship-worthy referent—so the reader should avoid forcing a secondary, metaphorical reading.
By insisting on primary denotation for the worship-worthy referent, the text supports a theologically “real” Supreme—consistent with Vaiṣṇava schools that treat the Lord’s supremacy as literal, not merely metaphorical.