Narada Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 83

Jyotiṣa-śāstra Saṅgraha: Threefold Division, Gaṇita Methods, Muhūrta, and Planetary Reckoning

Devanagari script

विलोमगतयः पातास्तद्वञ्चक्राष्विशोधिताः । योजनानि शतान्यष्टौ भूकर्णौ द्विगुणाः स्मृतः ॥ ८३ ॥

Transliteration

vilomagatayaḥ pātāstadvañcakrāṣviśodhitāḥ | yojanāni śatānyaṣṭau bhūkarṇau dviguṇāḥ smṛtaḥ || 83 ||

Translation

Ang mga dako ng Pātāla ay sinasabing may mga landas na salungat (pabaligtad); at doon ang mapanlinlang na mga gulong (mga siklo) ay hindi nalilinis, kaya nananatiling nakalilito. Ang “mga tainga ng daigdig” ay inaalalang may sukat na walong daang yojana, at ang kasunod na sukat ay sinasabing doble nito.

Word by Word

• viloma-gatayaḥ: reverse motions
• viloma-gatayaḥ: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: viloma (प्रातिपदिक) + gati (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन (Plural); तत्पुरुषः

• pātāḥ: falls/descents (nodes)
• pātāḥ: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pāta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन (Plural)

• tad: that
• tad: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Demonstrative)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन (Singular); सर्वनाम

• vañcakrāsu: in the vañcakrās (technical circles)
• vañcakrāsu: Adhikarana (अधिकरण/Location)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vañcakrā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), बहुवचन (Plural)

• viśodhitāḥ: are corrected/purified
• viśodhitāḥ: Vidhi (विधेय/Predicate)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vi-√śudh (धातु) + kta (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (past passive participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन (Plural)

• yojanāni: yojanas (distance units)
• yojanāni: Karma (कर्म/Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yojana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), बहुवचन (Plural)

• śatāni: hundreds
• śatāni: Visheshya (विशेष्य/Counted noun)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śata (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), बहुवचन (Plural)

• aṣṭau: eight
• aṣṭau: Visheshana (विशेषण/Numeral)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: aṣṭa (संख्या)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन (Plural) (numeral used with śatāni)

• bhū-karṇau: the two ‘earth-ears’ (technical term)
• bhū-karṇau: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhū (प्रातिपदिक) + karṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), द्विवचन (Dual); तत्पुरुषः

• dvi-guṇāḥ: twofold/doubled
• dvi-guṇāḥ: Visheshana (विशेषण/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: dvi (संख्या) + guṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन (Plural); द्विगु-समासः = ‘twofold’

• smṛtaḥ: is said/remembered
• smṛtaḥ: Vidhi (विधेय/Predicate)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: √smṛ (धातु) + kta (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (past passive participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular) (impersonal/elliptic usage)

Speaker

Sanatkumara (in dialogue with Narada)

Vrata Kalpa

Vrata: none

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Characters & Entities

• Narada
• Sanatkumara
• Patala

FAQs

What is the spiritual significance of this verse in Narada Purana?

It frames the nether realms (Pātālas) as zones of inversion and confusion—symbolically contrasting with clarity that supports mokṣa—while also preserving the Purāṇic tradition of sacred cosmographical measures.

How does this verse explain the path of devotion (Bhakti)?

Indirectly: by depicting realms marked by deception and reversed movement, it implies that steadiness of mind and right orientation—best stabilized through Viṣṇu-bhakti and dharma—protects one from भ्रम (delusion).

What practical Vedic knowledge (Vedanga) is highlighted here?

It reflects technical Purāṇic cosmography and traditional metrology (yojana-based measurement), aligning with the broader ‘Vedic sciences’ approach to mapping worlds and distances used in ritual and calendrical imagination.