Vamana Purana — Shukra's Curse on King Danda, Shloka 121

Shukra’s Curse on King Danda and Andhaka’s Challenge to Shiva

Devanagari script

नमो ऽस्तु शर्व शंबो त्रिनेत्र चारुगात्र त्रैलोक्यनाथ उमापते दक्षयज्ञविध्वंसकर कामाह्गनासन घोर पापप्रणाशन महापुरुष महोग्रमूर्ते सर्वसत्त्वक्षयङ्कर शुभङ्कर महेश्वर त्रिशूलधारिन् स्मरारे गुहावासिन् दिग्वासः महाशङ्कशेखर (5) जटाधर कपालमालाविभूषिकशरीर वामचक्षुः बामदेव प्रजाध्यक्ष भगाक्ष्णोः क्षयङ्कर भीमसेन महासेननाथ पशुपते कामाङ्गदहन चत्वरवासिन् शिव महादेव ईशान संकर भीम भव वषभध्वज जटिल प्रौढ महानाट्येश्वर भूरिरत्न (10) अविमुक्तक रुद्रश्वर स्थाणो एकलिङ्ग कालिन्दीप्रिय श्रीकण्ठ नीलकण्ठ अपराजित रिपुभयङ्कर संतोषपते वामदेव अघोर तत्पुरुष महाघोर अघोरमूर्त्त शान्त सरस्वतीकान्त कीनाट सहस्रमूर्त्ते महोद्भव (15) विबो कालाग्निरुद्र हर महीधरप्रिय सर्वतीर्थाधिवास हंस कामेश्वर केदाराधिपते परिपूर्ण मुचुकुन्द मधुनिवासिन् कृपाणपाणे भयङ्कर विद्याराज सोमराज कामराज उञ्जक अञ्जनराजकन्याहृदचलवसते समुद्रशायिन् (20) गजमुख घण्टेश्वर गोकर्ण ब्रह्मयोने सहस्रवक्त्राक्षिचरण हाटकेश्वर नमो ऽस्तु ते एतस्मिन्नन्तरे प्राप्ताः सर्व एवर्षिपार्थिवाः द्रष्टुं त्रैलोक्यकर्तारं त्र्यम्बकं हाटकेश्वरम्

Transliteration

namo 'stu śarva śaṃbo trinetra cārugātra trailokyanātha umāpate dakṣayajñavidhvaṃsakara kāmāhganāsana ghora pāpapraṇāśana mahāpuruṣa mahogramūrte sarvasattvakṣayaṅkara śubhaṅkara maheśvara triśūladhārin smarāre guhāvāsin digvāsaḥ mahāśaṅkaśekhara (5) jaṭādhara kapālamālāvibhūṣikaśarīra vāmacakṣuḥ bāmadeva prajādhyakṣa bhagākṣṇoḥ kṣayaṅkara bhīmasena mahāsenanātha paśupate kāmāṅgadahana catvaravāsin śiva mahādeva īśāna saṃkara bhīma bhava vaṣabhadhvaja jaṭila prauḍha mahānāṭyeśvara bhūriratna (10) avimuktaka rudraśvara sthāṇo ekaliṅga kālindīpriya śrīkaṇṭha nīlakaṇṭha aparājita ripubhayaṅkara saṃtoṣapate vāmadeva aghora tatpuruṣa mahāghora aghoramūrtta śānta sarasvatīkānta kīnāṭa sahasramūrtte mahodbhava (15) vibo kālāgnirudra hara mahīdharapriya sarvatīrthādhivāsa haṃsa kāmeśvara kedārādhipate paripūrṇa mucukunda madhunivāsin kṛpāṇapāṇe bhayaṅkara vidyārāja somarāja kāmarāja uñjaka añjanarājakanyāhṛdacalavasate samudraśāyin (20) gajamukha ghaṇṭeśvara gokarṇa brahmayone sahasravaktrākṣicaraṇa hāṭakeśvara namo 'stu te etasminnantare prāptāḥ sarva evarṣipārthivāḥ draṣṭuṃ trailokyakartāraṃ tryambakaṃ hāṭakeśvaram

Translation

Homage to you, Śarva, Śambhu—three-eyed, of beautiful form; Lord of the three worlds; consort of Umā; destroyer of Dakṣa’s sacrifice; the one who burned Kāma’s body; the eradicator of dreadful sins; the Great Person, of exceedingly fierce manifestation; the one who brings dissolution to all beings and yet the auspicious benefactor; Maheśvara, bearer of the trident; foe of Smara (Kāma); dweller in the cave; sky-clad; great lord crowned with the (crescent) emblem; matted-haired, whose body is adorned with a garland of skulls; Vāmadeva; overseer of creatures; Paśupati; resident of the sacred quadrangle; Śiva, Mahādeva, Īśāna, Śaṅkara, Bhīma, Bhava, whose banner is the bull; the great Lord of Dance; Avimukta; Rudreśvara; Sthāṇu; the One Liṅga; beloved of the Kālindī (Yamunā); Śrīkaṇṭha, Nīlakaṇṭha; unconquered, the one who terrifies enemies; lord of contentment; Aghora, Tatpuruṣa, Mahāghora; the peaceful one; beloved of Sarasvatī; of a thousand forms; the great source; mighty one; Kālāgni-Rudra; Hara; dear to the mountain-bearer; the indweller of all tīrthas; Haṃsa; Kāmeśvara; lord of Kedāra; complete; (protector of) Mucukunda; dwelling in Madhu; with sword in hand; the fearsome; king of knowledge; Soma-king; Kāma-king; resting upon the ocean; elephant-faced; lord of the bell; Gokarṇa; womb/source of Brahmā; having a thousand faces, eyes, feet—Hāṭakeśvara, homage to you. At that very time, all the sages and kings arrived, wishing to behold Tryambaka Hāṭakeśvara, the maker (and ruler) of the three worlds.

Speakers

• Narrative voice (Purāṇic narrator) presenting a collective Śiva-stuti; the arriving ṛṣis and kings are the implied devotees seeking darśana of Hāṭakeśvara.

Primary Deities

• Shiva
• Uma (Parvati)
• Kama
• Daksha
• Sarasvati

Key Themes

• Śiva-stuti through nāma-saṅkīrtana (litany of epithets)
• Tīrtha-mahima: Śiva as indweller of all sacred places
• Mythic allusions: Dakṣa-yajña destruction; burning of Kāma; Nīlakaṇṭha motif
• Pañcabrahma theology (Śiva’s fivefold aspects)
• Pilgrimage/darśana motivation of sages and kings

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

Why does the verse list so many names—what genre is this within the Purāṇa?

This is a nāma-mālā (litany of epithets) functioning as stuti. In Purāṇic tīrtha sections, such litanies both praise the deity and ‘map’ his presence across multiple kṣetras (e.g., Kedāra, Gokarṇa), reinforcing pilgrimage ideology.

What is the significance of ‘Sarvatīrthādhivāsa’ in a geography-centered text like the Vāmana Purāṇa?

It asserts that Śiva is not confined to one shrine: he presides in every tīrtha. This theological claim supports the text’s geographic program—enumerating places while grounding them in a single divine presence.

Do terms like Avimukta, Kedāra, and Gokarṇa indicate actual pilgrimage sites here?

Yes. They function as toponymic epithets: Avimukta (Kāśī zone), Kedāra (Himalayan Kedāranātha), and Gokarṇa (coastal/temple tīrtha). Their inclusion links Hāṭakeśvara’s praise to a wider pan-Indian tīrtha network.