Vamana Purana — Portents at Bali's Sacrifice, Shloka 47

Portents at Bali’s Sacrifice and the Kośakāra’s Son: The Power of Past Karma

Devanagari script

तं बान्धवाश्च पितरौ माता भ्राता गुरुस्तथा पर्यनिन्दंस्तथा ये च जना मलयवासिनः

Transliteration

taṃ bāndhavāśca pitarau mātā bhrātā gurustathā paryanindaṃstathā ye ca janā malayavāsinaḥ

Translation

His relatives—his parents, mother, brother, and teacher—as well as the people who dwelt in Malaya, all reproached him.

Speakers

• Narratorial voice within the chapter (speaker not specified in the provided excerpt)

Key Themes

• Community enforcement of dharma
• Role of guru and family in discipline
• Shame/censure as social corrective
• Regional setting marker (Malaya)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

{ "primaryRasa": "raudra", "secondaryRasa": "karuna", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }

FAQs

What is the significance of mentioning ‘malayavāsinaḥ’?

It anchors the exemplum in a recognizable Purāṇic geography (Malaya), indicating that the moral narrative is situated in a specific region rather than being purely abstract.

Why list family members and the guru separately?

The verse emphasizes that censure comes from every authority sphere—kinship (bāndhava), household (parents), pedagogy (guru), and wider society (janāḥ)—underscoring the seriousness of neglecting post-initiation study.

Does ‘paryanindan’ imply formal punishment?

Not necessarily; it denotes strong reproach and public blame. The next verse escalates from social censure to coercive action by the father.