Shloka 14

Hymns to Nārāyaṇa: Humility, Bhakti, Yoga, and the Guṇas

Devanagari script

विष्वक्सेन उवाच / भगवान्मोक्षदः कृष्णः पूर्णानन्दो सदायदि / यदि स्यात्परमा भक्तिर्ह्य परोक्षत्वसाधना

Transliteration

viṣvaksena uvāca / bhagavānmokṣadaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ pūrṇānando sadāyadi / yadi syātparamā bhaktirhya parokṣatvasādhanā

Translation

विष्वक्सेन उवाच । भगवान्मोक्षदः कृष्णः पूर्णानन्दः सदायदि । यदि स्यात्परमा भक्तिः सैवापरोक्षतासाधना ॥

Word by Word

• viṣvaksenaḥ: Viṣvaksena
• viṣvaksenaḥ: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: viṣvaksena (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular)

• uvāca: said
• uvāca: Kriyā (क्रिया/Verbal action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vac (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन (Singular), परस्मैपद

• bhagavān: the Blessed Lord
• bhagavān: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhagavat (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• mokṣa-daḥ: giver of liberation
• mokṣa-daḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mokṣa (प्रातिपदिक) + da (धातु/कृदन्त-आधार)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (mokṣasya dātā)

• kṛṣṇaḥ: Kṛṣṇa
• kṛṣṇaḥ: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṛṣṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• pūrṇa-ānandaḥ: full of bliss
• pūrṇa-ānandaḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pūrṇa (प्रातिपदिक) + ānanda (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; कर्मधारय (pūrṇaḥ ānandaḥ yasya/yaḥ)

• sadā: always
• sadā: Kriyā-viśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण/Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: sadā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; कालवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (adverb of time)

• yadi: if
• yadi: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Condition marker)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yadi (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; शर्तसूचक अव्यय (conditional particle)

• yadi: if
• yadi: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Condition marker)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yadi (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; शर्तसूचक अव्यय

• syāt: should be / may be
• syāt: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: as (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपद

• paramā: supreme
• paramā: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: parama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; (भक्तिः इति विशेष्येण सह)

• bhaktiḥ: devotion
• bhaktiḥ: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhakti (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• hi: indeed
• hi: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Emphasis)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: hi (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निपात (emphatic/causal particle)

• parokṣatva-sādhanā: a means to (attain) direct realization (removal of indirectness)
• parokṣatva-sādhanā: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: parokṣatva (प्रातिपदिक) + sādhanā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (parokṣatvasya sādhanā)

Speaker

Viṣvaksena

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Paramā-bhakti, sustained remembrance of Kṛṣṇa (mokṣada, pūrṇānanda), becomes the sādhana for aparokṣa realization.

Vedantic Theme: Bhakti culminating in sākṣātkāra (direct knowledge) and mokṣa; convergence of bhakti and jñāna (bhakti as jñāna-sādhana).

Application: Daily nāma-smaraṇa and contemplation of Bhagavān’s ānanda-svarūpa; measure progress by steadiness and deepening love rather than mere ritual quantity.

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: adbhuta

Geographic Context

Type: inner contemplative space (hṛdaya) with Vaikuṇṭha implied

Cross References

Related Themes: Garuda Purana 3.8.15–16 (bhakti without deceit; compassion toward beings like Tulasī; smṛti as sin-destroyer)

Characters & Entities

• Viṣvaksena
• Krishna

FAQs

What is the importance of supreme bhakti in Garuda Purana?

This verse presents paramā-bhakti (supreme devotion) as a decisive sādhanā that culminates in liberation and direct realization of the Lord.

How does this verse explain the path of the soul?

Rather than focusing on post-death routes, it emphasizes the inner cause of freedom: steadfast devotion to Kṛṣṇa that yields aparokṣa (immediate) realization, which is liberation in essence.

Practical application of this wisdom today?

Practice consistent devotion—daily remembrance, prayer, and ethical living aligned with the Lord—so devotion matures into steady, experiential clarity rather than mere belief.