Shloka 8

Pracetās, Māriṣā, Dakṣa’s Re-manifestation, and the Brahma-parastava; Cyclic Creation and Genealogies

Devanagari script

मारिषा नाम नाम्नैषा वृक्षाणाम् इति निर्मिता भार्या वो ऽस्तु महाभागा ध्रुवं वंशविवर्धिनी

Transliteration

māriṣā nāma nāmnaiṣā vṛkṣāṇām iti nirmitā bhāryā vo 'stu mahābhāgā dhruvaṃ vaṃśavivardhinī

Translation

Ela foi moldada pelas árvores e é conhecida pelo nome de Māriṣā. Que esta nobre senhora se torne vossa esposa; certamente ela ampliará e sustentará a vossa linhagem.

Word by Word

• मारिषा: Māriṣā
• मारिषा: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मारिषा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; नाम (proper noun)

• नाम: by name
• नाम: Sambandha (Naming marker)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: नाम (अव्यय)
• Form: नाम-अव्यय (particle: 'by name')

• नाम्ना: by the name
• नाम्ना: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नामन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (करण), एकवचन

• एषा: this (she)
• एषा: Apposition (समानाधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: एतद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• वृक्षाणाम्: of the trees
• वृक्षाणाम्: Shashthi-Sambandha (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वृक्ष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (सम्बन्ध), बहुवचन

• इति: thus
• इति: Sambandha (Quotation marker)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इति (अव्यय)
• Form: उद्धरण/निगमन-अव्यय (quotative particle)

• निर्मिता: created; made
• निर्मिता: Kriya (Predicative/क्रिया-विशेष्य)
• Type: Verb
• Root: निर्मा (धातु: निर् + मा) + क्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past passive participle) — 'made/created'

• भार्या: wife
• भार्या: Predicate nominative (विधेय)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भार्या (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• वः: of you; your
• वः: Shashthi-Sambandha (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: युष्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी-विभक्ति (सम्बन्ध), बहुवचन; सर्वनाम

• अस्तु: let her be
• अस्तु: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: अस् (धातु)
• Form: लोट्-लकार (आशीर्लिङ्/आज्ञार्थ), प्रथम-पुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• महाभागा: very fortunate; noble
• महाभागा: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: महā + भाग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; कर्मधारय-समास (महान् भागः यस्याः)

• ध्रुवम्: certainly
• ध्रुवम्: Kriya-visheshana (Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ध्रुव (अव्यय/प्रातिपदिक-नपुंसक)
• Form: निश्चय-अव्यय (adverb: certainly)

• वंशविवर्धिनी: increaser of the lineage
• वंशविवर्धिनी: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वंश + विवर्धिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (वंशस्य विवर्धिनी)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: How progeny and cosmic administration proceed through ordained marriages and births.

Teaching: Genealogical

Quality: authoritative

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Righteous union (vivāha) is presented as a dharmic instrument for sustaining cosmic continuity through worthy progeny.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Treat family responsibilities as sacred stewardship—choose relationships grounded in virtue and long-term welfare.

Vishishtadvaita: Householder life is not opposed to spirituality; it becomes a mode of serving the Lord’s embodied universe (cit-acit as His śarīra) through sustaining lineage and order.

Dynasty & Genealogy

Dharma Exemplar: Gṛhastha-dharma as a sanctioned means for vaṃśa-vṛddhi (continuity of creation through righteous family life).

Key Kings: Pracetās

Characters & Entities

• Māriṣā
• Trees (Vṛkṣas)
• Pracetas (implied)

FAQs

What is the significance of Māriṣā in the Vishnu Purana?

This verse presents Māriṣā as a divinely fashioned bride whose marriage is destined to expand the royal line, making her a pivotal link in the Purāṇic genealogy.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the continuation of dynasties in this context?

Through narrative causality: a providential marriage is arranged, and the text explicitly marks the bride as “vaṃśa-vivardhinī,” indicating that succession and social order proceed through destined progeny.

What is the theological importance of Lord Vishnu here?

Even when Vishnu is not named in the verse, the Purāṇa’s genealogies function as an expression of Vishnu’s sovereignty—dynastic continuity and order unfold within the divinely governed structure of creation.