Shloka 4

Names of Priyavrata’s Sons; Division of the Seven Continents; Sapta-dvīpa and Meru Description; Nābhi–Ṛṣabha–Bharata Lineage

Devanagari script

योजनानां प्रमाणेन पञ्चाशत्कोटिराप्लुता / जलोपरि मही याता मौरिवास्ते सरिज्जले

Transliteration

yojanānāṃ pramāṇena pañcāśatkoṭirāplutā / jalopari mahī yātā maurivāste sarijjale

Translation

యోజన ప్రమాణమున పంచాశత్ కోటి మేర జలముతో మునిగిన భూమి జలముపైకి లేచెను; మరియు ‘మౌరి’ అను జీవులు నది జలములో నివసించుచున్నారు।

Word by Word

• yojanānām: of yojanas
• yojanānām: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yojana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/सम्बन्ध), बहुवचन

• pramāṇena: by measure/according to the measure
• pramāṇena: Karana (Instrument/Measure/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pramāṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/करण), एकवचन

• pañcāśat-koṭiḥ: fifty crores
• pañcāśat-koṭiḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pañcāśat (प्रातिपदिक) + koṭi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुष (pañcāśat koṭayaḥ = fifty crores)

• āplutā: was flooded/covered
• āplutā: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ā-plu (धातु) → āpluta (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; अर्थः—‘flooded/covered’

• jala-upari: upon the water
• jala-upari: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: jala (प्रातिपदिक) + upari (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्ययीभावसमास; अव्यय; अर्थः—‘upon water’

• mahī: the earth
• mahī: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• yātā: extended/went
• yātā: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: yā (धातु) → yāta (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; अर्थः—‘gone/extended’

• mauri-vāste: dwells (as) Mauri
• mauri-vāste: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: mauri (प्रातिपदिक) + vāste (vas धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, आत्मनेपद; पूर्वपदम् ‘mauri’ (विशेषण/उपपद)

• sarit-jale: in river-water
• sarit-jale: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sarit (प्रातिपदिक) + jala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/अधिकरण), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुष (saritaḥ jale)

Speaker

Lord Vishnu (speaking to Garuda/Vinata-putra)

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: The cosmos is describable through measure and layered habitats; even hidden life-forms have appointed domains within order.

Vedantic Theme: Jagat as ordered manifestation (vyavahāra) with intelligible structure; humility before the vastness of creation.

Application: Balance rational measurement with reverence for ecological complexity; treat waters/rivers as protected, life-bearing domains.

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Geographic Context

Type: cosmic geography/hydrology

Cross References

Related Themes: Garuda Purana: subsequent sapta-dvīpa and ocean measurements likely elaborate these yojana metrics

Characters & Entities

• Mauris
• Earth (Mahī)
• Waters (Jala)
• Rivers (Sarit)

FAQs

What is the importance of cosmological measurements (yojana) in the Garuda Purana?

This verse uses yojana-based scale to frame Purāṇic cosmology, giving a traditional sense of vastness and structure that supports later descriptions of realms, routes, and environments connected with post-death narratives.

How does this verse explain the path of the soul?

Indirectly: it sets a cosmographic backdrop—earth, waters, rivers, and inhabited regions—within which the Garuda Purana later situates the soul’s post-death journey and the terrain-like descriptions of otherworldly passages.

Practical application of this wisdom today?

Treat sacred geography and rivers with reverence—supporting ethical conduct and purity practices—since Purāṇic texts present the natural world as inhabited, meaningful, and spiritually consequential.