Vamana Purana — Shukra's Curse on King Danda, Shloka 161

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

Devanagari script

ततो ऽनुचक्रुः संहृष्टा विवाहविधिमुत्तमम् ऋत्विजो ऽभूद् गालवस्तु हुत्वा हव्यं विधनतः

Transliteration

tato 'nucakruḥ saṃhṛṣṭā vivāhavidhimuttamam ṛtvijo 'bhūd gālavastu hutvā havyaṃ vidhanataḥ

Translation

“Then, rejoicing, they proceeded to perform the excellent rite of marriage. And Gālava became the officiating priest; having offered the oblation according to rule, he performed the prescribed offerings.”

Speakers

• Narrator voice (Purāṇic narrator) describing the rite; participants include Suratha
• the bride
• and sage Gālava as ṛtvij.

Primary Deities

• Agni (implicit as the fire receiving havya in marriage offerings)

Key Themes

• Vivāha-vidhi (marriage ritual)
• Vedic orthopraxy (vidhānataḥ)
• Role of ṛtvij (officiant)
• Fire-offering (homa)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

Why is a marriage described with sacrificial vocabulary like “havya” and “hutvā”?

Classical Hindu marriage is framed as a yajña-like rite: offerings into fire (Agni) sanctify vows and establish the union as a dharmic institution, not merely a social contract.

Who is Gālava in Purāṇic tradition, and what does his role imply?

Gālava is a well-known ṛṣi figure in Itihāsa-Purāṇa literature. Making him ṛtvij signals that the marriage is ritually impeccable and anchored in Brahmanical authority.

Is any tīrtha or landscape feature encoded here?

No explicit geography appears in this śloka; it is focused on ritual procedure rather than place-description.