Vamana Purana — Shukra's Curse on King Danda, Shloka 151

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

Devanagari script

भविष्यति पुतुस्तुभ्यं मत्सकाशान्न संशयः इत्येवमुक्ता संहृष्टा बभौ चित्राङ्गदा तदा

Transliteration

bhaviṣyati putustubhyaṃ matsakāśānna saṃśayaḥ ityevamuktā saṃhṛṣṭā babhau citrāṅgadā tadā

Translation

Maheśa: Śiva, the Great Lord; vacana: command/utterance; Nandī: Śiva’s attendant and gatekeeper, chief of attendants; tūrṇataraṃ: very swiftly; upaspṛśya jalam: touching water (ācamana/ritual purification before an act); śrīmān: illustrious, auspicious; sasmāra: remembered/invoked mentally; gaṇa-nāyaka: leader of the gaṇas (Śiva’s attendant hosts).

Speakers

• Unspecified in excerpt (a male speaker assuring Citrāṅgadā)

Key Themes

• Progeny boon
• Assurance/vara (boon)
• Auspiciousness preceding marriage/childbirth

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

Who is Citrāṅgadā here, and what is the narrative function of this line?

Within Purāṇic storytelling, Citrāṅgadā is presented as a named woman whose joy signals the successful reception of a boon/assurance. This verse functions as a narrative hinge: the promise of a son legitimizes the forthcoming marriage/union and sets up the subsequent pregnancy and birth sequence.

How should “mat-sakāśāt” be understood—literal paternity or divine/ritual agency?

The phrase can denote direct causality (“from me”) or mediated agency (“by my arrangement/through my power”). In Purāṇic idiom, such wording often frames conception as sanctioned by a higher authority, not merely biological paternity.

Why does the text emphasize her radiance (babhau) after hearing the assurance?

Radiance is a conventional auspicious marker (śubha-lakṣaṇa) indicating the fruition of a vow/boon and the turning of fate toward prosperity—especially in contexts of marriage and progeny.