Vamana Purana — Jabali on the Banyan Tree, Shloka 18
Jabali Bound on the Banyan Tree and Nandayanti’s Appeal at Sri-Kantha on the Yamuna
उताहोस्विदिमाः शक्याः क्रियाः कर्तुं नरेर्बलात् न च शक्यो हरो जेतुं सत्यं सत्यं मयोदितम्
utāhosvidimāḥ śakyāḥ kriyāḥ kartuṃ narerbalāt na ca śakyo haro jetuṃ satyaṃ satyaṃ mayoditam
أم لعلّ هذه الأفعال يمكن حقًّا أن تُنجَز بقوة إنسانٍ مجرد؟ وإن هارا (شيفا) لا يُقهَر—هذا حقّ، حقّ، كما نطقتُ به.
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FAQs
‘Hara’ is Śiva as the remover—of sin, pride, and cosmic disorder. The statement is not merely martial; it asserts a theological principle: forces acting from ego and adharma cannot ultimately subdue the cosmic regulator who embodies tapas and dharma.
No. It critiques overconfidence: certain transgressive ‘kriyāḥ’ (acts driven by lust, violence, or sacrilege) are not truly sustainable by finite power. Dharma may empower action, but adharma collapses under its own consequences.
It frames the coming exemplum (King Daṇḍa) as a cautionary parallel: even a powerful ruler falls when he violates moral boundaries; likewise, a Daitya’s attempt to ‘defeat’ Śiva is portrayed as fundamentally misguided.