Shloka 4

कलिस्वरूप-वर्णनम् एवं कालमान-प्रस्तावना

Devanagari script

अहोरात्रं पितॄणां तु मासो ऽब्दस् त्रिदिवौकसाम् चतुर्युगसहस्रे तु ब्रह्मणो द्वे द्विजोत्तम

Transliteration

ahorātraṃ pitṝṇāṃ tu māso 'bdas tridivaukasām caturyugasahasre tu brahmaṇo dve dvijottama

Translation

பித்ருக்களின் பகல்-இரவு வேறுபட்டதாகக் கணிக்கப்படுகிறது; தேவலோக வாசிகளுக்கு ஒரு மாதமே அவர்களின் பகல்-இரவு, ஒரு ஆண்டே அவர்களின் கால அளவு. நான்கு யுகங்களின் ஆயிரம் சுழற்சிகள் பிரம்மாவின் பகல்-இரவு, ஓ இருபிறப்பில் சிறந்தவரே.

Word by Word

• अहोरात्रम्: a day-and-night (a full day)
• अहोरात्रम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ahaḥ-rātra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्तृ), एकवचन; समास: अहः च रात्रिः (द्वन्द्व)

• पितॄणाम्: of the Pitṛs (manes)
• पितॄणाम्: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठी-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pitṛ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/सम्बन्ध), बहुवचन

• तु: but, indeed
• तु: Nipata (Particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; विरोध/विशेष (contrastive particle)

• मासः: a month
• मासः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: māsa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्तृ), एकवचन

• अब्दः: a year
• अब्दः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: abda (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्तृ), एकवचन

• त्रिदिवौकसाम्: of the dwellers in heaven (the gods)
• त्रिदिवौकसाम्: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठी-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tri-diva-okas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/सम्बन्ध), बहुवचन; समास: त्रिदिवे ओकः येषाम् (बहुव्रीह्यर्थे प्रयोगः), प्रचलित-रूपेण ‘देवाः’

• चतुर्युगसहस्रे: in a thousand (sets) of four yugas
• चतुर्युगसहस्रे: Adhikarana (Locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: catur-yuga-sahasra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/अधिकरण), एकवचन; समास: चतुर्युगानां सहस्रम् (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष)

• तु: and/indeed
• तु: Nipata (Particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; विशेष/अन्वय (particle)

• ब्रह्मणः: of Brahmā
• ब्रह्मणः: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठी-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/सम्बन्ध), एकवचन

• द्वे: two
• द्वे: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: dvi (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, द्विवचन; संख्याविशेषण (numeral adjective)

• द्विजोत्तम: O best of the twice-born
• द्विजोत्तम: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dvija-uttama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th/सम्बोधन), एकवचन; समास: द्विजः एव उत्तमः (कर्मधारय)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (teaching Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Relative measures of time for Pitṛs, Devas, and Brahmā (day/night of Brahmā)

Teaching: Cosmological

Quality: authoritative

Cosmological Context

Creation Stage: Kalpa

Cosmic Hierarchy: Lokas

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Time is relative across realms: Pitṛs, Devas, and Brahmā experience different day-night measures, culminating in Brahmā’s vast day-night of a thousand caturyugas.

Vedantic Theme: Maya

Application: Use the vastness of cosmic time to recalibrate priorities toward dharma and liberation rather than short-lived gains.

Vishishtadvaita: The ordered gradation of time across lokas reflects a real cosmic hierarchy sustained under the Supreme’s governance, not a mere illusion.

Characters & Entities

• Pitrs (ancestors)
• Devas (tridivaukas)
• Brahma

FAQs

What is the significance of differing time scales for Pitṛs and Devas in the Vishnu Purana?

It teaches that time is experienced and measured differently across cosmic realms, establishing a graded universe where human, ancestral, divine, and cosmic times fit into one ordered hierarchy.

How does Sage Parāśara explain cosmic time in this chapter?

He lays out a ladder of time-units—moving from human measures to Pitṛ and Deva measures—culminating in Brahmā’s day-and-night defined by a thousand four-Yuga cycles.

What is the theological importance of Lord Vishnu in this context?

By mapping the universe through precise cycles, the Purana implies a sovereign cosmic law ultimately grounded in Vishnu, within whose order creation, duration, and dissolution proceed.