Shloka 17

धर्मद्वारबहुत्वविमर्शः — Reflection on the Many ‘Doors’ of Dharma (Śānti-parva 342)

Devanagari script

प्रसादात्‌ प्रादुरभवत्‌ पद्म पद्मनिभेक्षण । ततो ब्रह्मा समभवत्‌ स तस्यैव प्रसादज:

Transliteration

prasādāt prādurabhavat padma padmanibhekṣaṇa | tato brahmā samabhavat sa tasyaiva prasādajaḥ ||

Translation

阿周那说道：“凭他的恩德，莲华显现，噢，莲眼者！继而梵天从那莲华中出现；而那梵天，唯由那位主宰的恩宠而生。”

Word by Word

• प्रसादात्: from (the) grace/favor
• प्रसादात्: Apadana
• Type: Noun
• Root: प्रसाद
• Form: Masculine, Ablative, Singular

• प्रादुरभवत्: appeared, came forth
• Type: Verb
• Root: भू
• Form: Imperfect (Laṅ), 3rd, Singular, Parasmaipada

• पद्मम्: a lotus
• पद्मम्: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: पद्म
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

• पद्मनिभेक्षण: O lotus-eyed one
• Type: Noun
• Root: पद्म-निभ-ईक्षण
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

• ततः: then; from that (lotus)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः

• ब्रह्मा: Brahmā
• ब्रह्मा: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्रह्मन् (ब्रह्मा)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• समभवत्: came to be, arose
• Type: Verb
• Root: भू
• Form: Imperfect (Laṅ), 3rd, Singular, Parasmaipada

• सः: he
• सः: Karta
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद् (स)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• तस्य: of him
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Genitive, Singular

• एव: indeed, only
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव

• प्रसादजः: born of (his) grace
• Type: Adjective
• Root: प्रसाद-ज
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

Speaker

अर्जुन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Arjuna
• Brahmā
• Padma (lotus)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Creation is presented as dependent on divine grace: even Brahmā’s emergence is traced to the Lord’s prasāda, emphasizing devotion and the primacy of the supreme source over secondary creators.

What is happening in the narrative?

Arjuna describes a cosmogonic sequence: by the Lord’s favor a lotus manifests, and from that lotus Brahmā arises—explicitly stated to be born from that same divine grace.