Vamana Purana — Prahlada's Instructions to Bali, Shloka 37

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

Devanagari script

यः कारयेन्मन्दिरं केशवस्य पुण्यांल्लोकान् स जयेच्छाश्वतान् वै दत्त्वारामान् पुष्पफलाभिपन्नान् भोगान् भुङ्क्ते कामातः श्लाघनीयान्

Transliteration

yaḥ kārayenmandiraṃ keśavasya puṇyāṃllokān sa jayecchāśvatān vai dattvārāmān puṣpaphalābhipannān bhogān bhuṅkte kāmātaḥ ślāghanīyān

Translation

যে কেশবের মন্দির নির্মাণ করায়, সে পুণ্যলোক—নিশ্চয়ই শাশ্বত লোক—জয় করে (প্রাপ্ত হয়)। আর পুষ্প-ফলসমৃদ্ধ উদ্যান দান করে, সে ইচ্ছামতো প্রশংসনীয় ভোগ উপভোগ করে।

Speakers

• (Contextual frame of Adhyaya 68) Purāṇic instruction on the fruits (phala) of building Keśava’s temple and endowing gardens; exact interlocutors not specified in the excerpt.

Primary Deities

• Vishnu (Keśava)

Key Themes

• Temple construction (mandira-nirmāṇa)
• Phalaśruti (merit results)
• Endowments (ārāma-dāna)
• Heavenly attainment (puṇya-loka)
• Pious enjoyment aligned with dharma

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

What does ‘conquers the everlasting worlds’ mean in Purāṇic idiom?

‘Jayet lokān’ is a stock expression for attaining superior post-mortem states through merit. ‘Śāśvata’ intensifies the claim: the result is not a fleeting reward but a stable, exalted destination (often understood as Viṣṇu-related realms or long-lasting heavenly states).

Why are gardens (ārāma) singled out alongside temple-building?

Ārāma-dāna supports continuous worship and hospitality: flowers for pūjā, fruits for offerings and feeding, shade and rest for pilgrims. In tīrtha-culture, such endowments are treated as ongoing merit because they repeatedly benefit worship and travelers.

Does the verse endorse sensual enjoyment (bhoga) as a religious goal?

It frames ‘bhoga’ as a dharmically obtained fruit of meritorious acts, not as indulgence divorced from ethics. The adjective ‘ślāghanīya’ (‘praiseworthy’) signals that the enjoyments are legitimate results of righteous giving and service.