Shloka 40

प्रचेतसां तपः तथा विष्णु-स्तुतिः

The Pracetases’ Ocean Tapas and Hymn to Vishnu

Devanagari script

अनाकाशम् असंस्पर्शम् अगन्धम् अरसं च यत् अचक्षुःश्रोत्रम् अचलम् अवाक्पाणिम् अमानसम्

Transliteration

anākāśam asaṃsparśam agandham arasaṃ ca yat acakṣuḥśrotram acalam avākpāṇim amānasam

Translation

Ang Kataas-taasang Katotohanan ay hindi likas na espasyo; di naaabot ng paghipo, walang amoy at walang lasa—walang mata at tainga, di gumagalaw; walang pananalita at kamay, at lampas pa sa isip.

Word by Word

• anākāśam: without space/ether
• anākāśam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: an-ākāśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; नञ्-पूर्वक विशेषण (negating prefix)

• asaṃsparśam: without touch/contact
• asaṃsparśam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a-saṃsparśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; नञ्-पूर्वक विशेषण

• agandham: without smell
• agandham: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a-gandha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; नञ्-पूर्वक विशेषण

• arasam: without taste
• arasam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a-rasa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; नञ्-पूर्वक विशेषण

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक अव्यय (conjunction)

• yat: that which
• yat: Visheshya (Head/विशेष्य)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; सम्बन्धसूचक सर्वनाम (relative pronoun)

• acakṣuḥśrotram: without eyes and ears
• acakṣuḥśrotram: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a-cakṣus + śrotra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; नञ्-पूर्वक द्वन्द्वसमास (eyes and ears)

• acalam: immovable
• acalam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a-cala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; नञ्-पूर्वक विशेषण

• avākpāṇim: without speech and hands
• avākpāṇim: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a-vāk + pāṇi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; नञ्-पूर्वक द्वन्द्वसमास (speech and hands)

• amānasam: without mind
• amānasam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a-mānasa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; नञ्-पूर्वक विशेषण

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (teaching Maitreya)

Characters & Entities

• Vishnu

FAQs

What is the significance of describing the Supreme as ‘without smell, taste, touch, and space’ in the Vishnu Purana?

It asserts Vishnu as the transcendent Para Brahman—beyond elemental qualities and sensory grasp—so the Supreme is not a material object within creation but the immutable ground of it.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the Supreme as beyond the mind and senses?

By negating sensory organs and functions (eyes, ears, speech, hands, mind), Parāśara indicates that the Supreme cannot be fully known through ordinary perception, but is realized as the highest reality underlying all experience.

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

Vishnu is presented as the sovereign Absolute—unchanging and supra-material—whose transcendence supports Vaishnava theology that the Lord is both beyond the world and the ultimate source of cosmic order.