Vamana Purana — Caturmasya Observances, Shloka 45
The Cāturmāsya Observances and the Sleeping–Awakening Cycle of the Gods (Hari–Hara Worship)
गगनात् स परिभ्रष्टः पथि वायुनिषेविते यदृच्छया निपतितो यन्त्रमुक्तो यथोपलः
gaganāt sa paribhraṣṭaḥ pathi vāyuniṣevite yadṛcchayā nipatito yantramukto yathopalaḥ
Having slipped/fallen from the sky, along a path swept by the wind, he fell down helplessly—like a stone released from a mechanism.
{ "primaryRasa": "karuna", "secondaryRasa": "bhayanaka", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }
FAQs
When divine law (dharma/ṛta) asserts itself, the individual’s sense of control collapses; the ‘chance’ (yadṛcchā) here underlines helplessness once one’s merit or protection is exhausted.
Episode narration supporting Carita/Vamśānucarita: it illustrates consequences within a story rather than cosmogenesis or dynastic catalogues.
The simile ‘like a stone released from a machine’ conveys inevitability and momentum: once the trigger is pulled (Śiva’s glance in the prior verse), the fall proceeds mechanically—suggesting the impersonal certainty of karmic consequence under divine governance.