Vamana Purana — Prahlada's Victory through Bhakti, Shloka 5

Prahlada’s Defeat in Battle and Victory through Bhakti (Nara-Narayana Episode)

Devanagari script

आनम्य चापं वेगेन गार्द्धूपत्राञ्सिलीमुखान् मुमोच साध्याय तदा क्रोधन्धकारिताननः

Transliteration

ānamya cāpaṃ vegena gārddhūpatrāñsilīmukhān mumoca sādhyāya tadā krodhandhakāritānanaḥ

Translation

Bending his bow with speed, he then released sharp arrows, feathered like a vulture’s pinions, against Sādhya—his face darkened as though by the blindness of wrath.

Word by Word

• आनम्य: having bent (drawn)
• आनम्य: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण/पूर्वक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: आ-नम् (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (absolutive/gerund), पूर्वकालिक क्रिया; धातु: नम् (to bend) उपसर्ग: आ

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

• आपम्: the bow
• आपम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: आप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (कर्म), एकवचन

• वेगेन: with speed/force
• वेगेन: Karaṇa (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वेग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (करण), एकवचन

• गार्द्धूपत्रान्: having vulture-feathers (fletched)
• गार्द्धूपत्रान्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: गार्द्धूपत्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (कर्म), बहुवचन; विशेषण (qualifier)

• सिलीमुखान्: arrows
• सिलीमुखान्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सिलीमुख (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (कर्म), बहुवचन

• मुमोच: released/shot
• मुमोच: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: मुच् (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (परोक्षभूत/Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपद

• साध्याय: for/at Sādhya
• साध्याय: Sampradāna (सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: साध्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी (सम्प्रदान), एकवचन

• तदा: then
• तदा: Kāla-adhikaraṇa (कालाधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तदा (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक अव्यय (temporal adverb)

• क्रोध-अन्धकारित-आननः: he whose face was darkened by anger
• क्रोध-अन्धकारित-आननः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: क्रोध (प्रातिपदिक) + अन्धकारित (कृदन्त/प्रातिपदिक) + आनन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: बहुव्रीहिसमास; पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (कर्ता), एकवचन; ‘यस्य आननं क्रोधेन अन्धकारितम्’

Speakers

• Not specified in the provided excerpt (likely within the Pulastya–Nārada narrative frame
• but not identifiable from these verses alone).

Key Themes

• Daitya-Deva Conflict
• Martial valor
• Krodha (anger) as a blinding force

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

What is the philosophical or ethical takeaway?

The verse frames anger (krodha) as a force that ‘darkens’ discernment; even martial prowess is shown as morally compromised when driven by wrath rather than dharma.

How does this fit the Pancalakshana?

This belongs to Vamśānucarita/Carita-type narration (accounts of beings and their deeds), specifically a battle episode within the broader narrative flow, rather than cosmogenesis (sarga) or dissolution (pralaya).

What is the symbolic significance?

The ‘darkened face’ motif externalizes inner tamas: the warrior’s psychological state becomes visible, signaling that adharma often begins as an inner eclipse before it manifests as violence.