Shloka 27

Origins of the Maruts — Across the Manvantaras

Devanagari script

पूतनामप्सरोमुख्यां प्राह नारद वाक्यवित् गच्छस्व पूतने शैलं महामेरुं विशालिनम्

Transliteration

pūtanāmapsaromukhyāṃ prāha nārada vākyavit gacchasva pūtane śailaṃ mahāmeruṃ viśālinam

Translation

O Nārada, the eloquent one said to Pūtanā, foremost among the apsarases: ‘Go, Pūtanā, to the broad mountain Mahāmeru.’

Speakers

• Likely Indra (Sahasrākṣa) speaking to apsaras Pūtanā; the narration is addressed to Nārada (vocative ‘nārada’)

Primary Deities

• Indra

Key Themes

• Indra’s countermeasure to tapas (sending apsarases)
• Apsaras as agents of distraction/temptation
• Cosmic mountain as ascetic theatre (Meru)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

Is this Pūtanā the same as the Pūtanā slain by infant Kṛṣṇa?

No. The name Pūtanā can occur for different figures across Purāṇic corpora. Here she is explicitly ‘apsaro-mukhyā’ (a chief apsaras), not the rākṣasī/demoness of the Bhāgavata/Kṛṣṇa narrative.

Why are apsarases dispatched to ascetics on Meru?

This is a standard Purāṇic motif: Indra, fearing loss of status, sends celestial nymphs to disturb tapas. The episode tests whether the ascetics’ discipline is stable and whether their aim aligns with dharma.

What does describing Mahāmeru as ‘viśālinam’ add?

It reinforces Meru’s grandeur as sacred geography and cosmographic axis. The epithet also heightens the narrative scale: the contest between tapas and temptation unfolds on a vast, world-centering mountain.