Shloka 30

Prahlada's Instructions to Bali — Prahlada’s Instructions to Bali on Vishnu Worship, Monthly Gifts, and Building Hari’s Temple

Devanagari script

मासि भाद्रपदे दद्यात् पायसं मधुसर्पिषी हृषीकेशप्रीणनार्थं लवणं सगुडोदनम्

Transliteration

māsi bhādrapade dadyāt pāyasaṃ madhusarpiṣī hṛṣīkeśaprīṇanārthaṃ lavaṇaṃ saguḍodanam

Translation

In the month of Bhādrapada, one should give pāyasa (milk-rice) together with honey and ghee; and, for the purpose of pleasing Hṛṣīkeśa, one should also give salt and cooked rice mixed with jaggery.

Speakers

• Narrative instruction within the Purāṇic discourse (speaker not specified in the provided excerpt) prescribing month-wise dāna for Viṣṇu’s satisfaction.

Primary Deities

• Vishnu (Hṛṣīkeśa)

Key Themes

• Dāna (Charity)
• Māsa-dāna (month-specific gifts)
• Vaiṣṇava devotion through offerings
• Ritual economy of food-gifts

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

Why are specific foods assigned to Bhādrapada in this instruction?

Māsa-dāna sections map the ritual year onto a calendar of meritorious gifts. The month becomes a liturgical frame: giving seasonally appropriate, socially valuable items is presented as a direct means to ‘please’ a named form of Viṣṇu.

What is the significance of the epithet Hṛṣīkeśa here?

Hṛṣīkeśa (‘Lord of the senses’) emphasizes mastery and sanctification of sensory life. Food-gifts—objects of taste and nourishment—are thus symbolically redirected from personal enjoyment toward devotional merit.

Does this verse contain any tīrtha or geographic reference typical of the Vāmana Purāṇa?

No. Although the Vāmana Purāṇa is strongly oriented to sacred geography in many sections, this particular verse is a dharma-style prescription without named places.