Shloka 9

Maitreya’s Inquiry into Prahlāda: The Logic of Bhakti’s Invincibility

Devanagari script

कृत्यां च दैत्यगुरवो युयुजुस् ते तु किं मुने शम्बरश् चापि मायानां सहस्रं किं प्रयुक्तवान्

Transliteration

kṛtyāṃ ca daityaguravo yuyujus te tu kiṃ mune śambaraś cāpi māyānāṃ sahasraṃ kiṃ prayuktavān

Translation

圣者啊，底提耶的师长们也放出了由邪仪所生的克利提耶凶灵吗？并请告知：商婆罗也施展了千般摩耶幻术之计吗？

Word by Word

• कृत्याम्: a magical rite/witchcraft (kṛtyā)
• कृत्याम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कृत्या (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• दैत्यगुरवः: the teachers of the Daityas
• दैत्यगुरवः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दैत्य (प्रातिपदिक) + गुरु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), बहुवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (दैत्यानां गुरवः)

• युयुजुः: they employed/applied
• युयुजुः: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √युज् (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (परोक्षभूत/Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन; परस्मैपदम्

• ते: they/those
• ते: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), बहुवचन; सर्वनाम

• तु: but/indeed
• तु: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: विरोध/विशेषबोधक-अव्यय (particle: ‘but/indeed’)

• किम्: why/what
• किम्: Prashna (Interrogative/प्रश्न)
• Type: Noun
• Root: किम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; प्रश्नवाचक

• मुने: O sage
• मुने: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मुनि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8), एकवचन

• शम्बरः: Śambara (name of an asura)
• शम्बरः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शम्बर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• अपि: also
• अपि: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय/अवधारणबोधक-अव्यय (particle: ‘also/even’)

• मायानाम्: of illusions/magic powers
• मायानाम्: Shashthi-Sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठी-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: माया (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6), बहुवचन

• सहस्रम्: a thousand
• सहस्रम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सहस्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; संख्यावाचक

• किम्: why/what
• किम्: Prashna (Interrogative/प्रश्न)
• Type: Noun
• Root: किम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; प्रश्नवाचक

• प्रयुक्तवान्: employed/used (has used)
• प्रयुक्तवान्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्र+√युज् (धातु) → प्रयुक्तवत् (कृदन्त; क्तवतुँ)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; क्तवतुँ-कृदन्त (perfective participle) — ‘having employed’

Speaker

Maitreya (questioning Sage Parāśara)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Maitreya

Topic: Whether Daitya preceptors unleashed a kṛtyā and whether Śambara employed a thousand māyās

Teaching: Devotional

Quality: investigative, precise

Prahlada Narrative

Phase: Persecution

Bhakti Quality: unshaken remembrance amid occult attack

Vaishnava Theology

Bhakti Type: Shanta

Characters & Entities

• Maitreya
• Sage Parāśara
• Daityas (Asuras)
• Daitya-gurus (Asura preceptors)
• Śambara
• Kṛtyā (rite-born spirit)
• Māyā (sorcery/illusion)

FAQs

What is the significance of kṛtyā in the Vishnu Purana?

In this verse, kṛtyā represents a weaponized ritual-force—an embodiment of hostile, adharma-driven magic—used to challenge dharma, yet ultimately shown as inferior to the divine protection surrounding Vishnu’s lineage.

How does Sage Parāśara explain māyā in this narrative context?

The question anticipates Parāśara’s account of Śambara’s māyā as deliberate deception and sorcery—dramatic obstacles that highlight how divine sovereignty renders illusory powers ineffective against the Lord’s purpose.

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

Even when asuras deploy kṛtyā and extensive māyā, the underlying message is that all such powers are subordinate to Vishnu’s supreme order, which safeguards and fulfills the divine narrative.