Shloka 11

केशीवधः तथा ‘केशव’ नामप्रसिद्धिः

Devanagari script

कृष्णस्य ववृधे बाहुः केशिदेहगतो द्विज विनाशाय यथा व्याधिर् आसंभूतेर् उपेक्षितः

Transliteration

kṛṣṇasya vavṛdhe bāhuḥ keśidehagato dvija vināśāya yathā vyādhir āsaṃbhūter upekṣitaḥ

Translation

ดูก่อนพราหมณ์ เมื่อพระพาหาของพระกฤษณะเข้าไปในร่างของเกศิน มันก็ขยายใหญ่ขึ้น ดุจดั่งโรคร้ายที่ถูกเพิกเฉยแต่ต้น ย่อมลุกลามไปเพื่อความพินาศ

Word by Word

कृष्णस्यof Krishna

ववृधेgrew; increased

बाहुःarm

केशिदेहगतःhaving entered Keśin’s body

द्विजO twice-born (sage)

विनाशायfor destruction

यथाjust as

व्याधिःa disease

आसंभूतेःof its first arising; at the onset

उपेक्षितःneglected

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)

Characters & Entities

Krishna

Keshi

FAQs

What is the significance of the disease simile in this Vishnu Purana verse?

It portrays adharma/asuric force as self-defeating: once it allows the Divine to enter (here, Kṛṣṇa’s arm within Keśī), its own neglect and arrogance become the cause of inevitable destruction.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the defeat of Keśī here?

Parāśara narrates a concrete physical miracle—Kṛṣṇa’s arm expanding inside Keśī—framed with a moral analogy, showing how evil ripens into its own end when unchecked.

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

Kṛṣṇa’s effortless victory signals Vishnu’s supreme sovereignty: the Avatar restores dharma not merely by strength, but by the irresistible presence of the Supreme within the forces of chaos.