Vamana Purana — Nara-Narayana's Tapas, Shloka 67

Nara-Narayana’s Tapas, Indra’s Temptation, and the Burning of Kama: The Origin of Ananga and the Shiva-Linga Episode

Devanagari script

ततः स पतितो लिङ्गो विभिद्य वसुधातलम् रसातलं विवेशाशु ब्रह्मण्डं चोर्ध्वतो ऽभिनत्

Transliteration

tataḥ sa patito liṅgo vibhidya vasudhātalam rasātalaṃ viveśāśu brahmaṇḍaṃ cordhvato 'bhinat

Translation

ثم إن ذلك اللِنْغَ الساقط شقَّ سطحَ الأرض، ودخل سريعًا إلى رَساطَلَة (Rasātala)؛ كما أنه اندفع إلى أعلى فصدم البْرَهْمَانْدَة (brahmāṇḍa)، أي «البيضة الكونية».

Word by Word

• tataḥ: then
• tataḥ: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Avyaya, adverb

• saḥ: he/that (liṅga)
• saḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative singular; pronoun

• patitaḥ: fallen
• patitaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pat (धातु)
• Form: Past passive participle (क्त), Masculine nominative singular; agreeing with liṅgaḥ

• liṅgaḥ: the liṅga
• liṅgaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: liṅga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (here as personified), Nominative singular

• vibhidya: having pierced/split
• vibhidya: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: bhid (धातु) with vi- (उपसर्ग)
• Form: Absolutive/Gerund (क्त्वा-प्रत्यय), ‘having split’

• vasudhā-talam: the surface of the earth
• vasudhā-talam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vasudhā (प्रातिपदिक) + tala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Tatpuruṣa (तत्पुरुष) ‘vasudhāyāḥ talaṃ’; Neuter, Accusative singular

• rasātalam: Rasātala (netherworld)
• rasātalam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rasātala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Accusative singular

• viveśa: entered
• viveśa: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: viś (धातु) with vi- (उपसर्ग)
• Form: Perfect (लिट्), 3rd person singular, Parasmaipada

• āśu: quickly
• āśu: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: āśu (अव्यय/प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Avyaya, adverb (क्रियाविशेषण)

• brahma-aṇḍam: the cosmic egg/universe
• brahma-aṇḍam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahman (प्रातिपदिक) + aṇḍa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Tatpuruṣa (तत्पुरुष) ‘brahmaṇaḥ aṇḍam’; Neuter, Accusative singular

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya, conjunction (समुच्चय)

• ūrdhvataḥ: upwards/from above
• ūrdhvataḥ: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ūrdhva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Avyaya, adverb (directional) ‘from above/upwards’

• abhinat: split/cleft
• abhinat: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: bhid (धातु) with abhi- (उपसर्ग)
• Form: Imperfect (लङ्), 3rd person singular, Parasmaipada; ‘split/cleft’

Speakers

• Primary narrative frame typically Pulastya → Nārada (specific speaker not explicit in the given verse snippet)

Primary Deities

• Śiva (via liṅga symbolism)
• Brahmā (implied by brahmāṇḍa; explicitly appears next verses)

Key Themes

• Shaivism
• Cosmology
• Linga Worship
• Sectarian Harmony (implicit, as the Purāṇa often integrates Śaiva and Vaiṣṇava frames)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

What is the philosophical or ethical takeaway?

The verse presents the liṅga as a cosmic principle rather than merely a local icon: divine reality pervades and transcends all levels of existence (earth, netherworlds, and the brahmāṇḍa). Ethically, it implies humility—finite beings cannot contain or fully measure the Infinite.

How does this fit the Pancalakshana?

Primarily aligns with Sarga/Pratisarga-style cosmological description (structure of worlds and cosmic disturbance), rather than Vamśānucarita. It is a cosmographic-cosmic event motif used to situate later narrative action.

What is the symbolic significance?

The liṅga here functions like an axis mundi: it links the underworld (Rasātala) and the upper cosmic enclosure (brahmāṇḍa). Such imagery supports Purāṇic non-dual sectarian rhetoric: Śiva’s liṅga is not merely sectarian but a universal ‘mark’ of the Absolute.