Shloka 24
The Greatness of Hari’s Janmāṣṭamī (Jayantī) Vow
वरं दत्वा पुराप्यग्रे मायया तु प्रवंचितः । भागिनेयं विना शंभो मरणं भविता न मे
varaṃ datvā purāpyagre māyayā tu pravaṃcitaḥ | bhāgineyaṃ vinā śaṃbho maraṇaṃ bhavitā na me
Einst, nachdem ich einen Segen gewährt hatte, wurde ich wahrlich von Māyā getäuscht. O Śambhu, ohne den Sohn meiner Schwester wird der Tod nicht zu mir kommen.
Uncertain from single-verse context (addressing Śambhu/Śiva directly)
Concept: Boons granted without discernment can bind the giver; māyā operates through loopholes in intention and speech.
Application: Be careful with promises and commitments; align speech with long-term dharma and seek clarity before granting requests.
Primary Rasa: bhayanaka
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A tense divine audience: a boon-granter stands before Śambhu, confessing how māyā turned an ancient boon into a trap. The air feels heavy with fate—an unseen thread of destiny coils around the speaker’s words as Śiva listens in still, austere silence.","primary_figures":["Śiva (Śambhu)","a boon-granting deva/being (unspecified speaker)","attendant gaṇas (optional)"],"setting":"Kailāsa-like divine court with stone terraces, ash-smeared austerity symbols, and a distant cosmic sky suggesting timelessness.","lighting_mood":"moonlit with austere silver-blue glow","color_palette":["ash white","smoky indigo","moon-silver","rudraksha brown","deep crimson accent"],"tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore painting style: Śiva as Śambhu seated in a frontal, iconic posture with gold leaf halo and ornate throne, while a supplicant deva gestures in confession; heavy gold embellishment on Śiva’s ornaments, rich maroon and emerald borders, stylized Kailāsa backdrop, gem-studded details emphasizing the gravity of a boon-bound fate.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari miniature style: a quiet Himalayan Kailāsa terrace under a pale moon, Śiva calm and luminous, the speaker leaning forward with anxious hands; delicate brushwork, cool blues and greys, refined faces, sparse pine and rocky slopes, lyrical negative space conveying ominous destiny.","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural style: bold black outlines, Śiva with large expressive eyes and tiger-skin motif, the speaker shown in profile with pleading gesture; flat temple-wall composition, natural pigments in red/ochre/green, minimal background symbols of māyā as swirling vine-like patterns.","pichwai_prompt":"Pichwai cloth painting style: symbolic rather than literal—Śiva at center with ornate floral borders, māyā depicted as curling lotus-vines encircling a written boon-scroll; deep indigo ground, gold highlights, intricate border motifs, devotional symmetry."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"dramatic","suggested_raga":"Bhairavi","pace":"moderate-narrative","voice_tone":"authoritative","sound_elements":["low temple drum","distant conch shell","wind over mountains","brief bell strokes","pregnant silence between pādas"]}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: purāpyagre → purā api agre (sandhi split).
FAQs
The speaker laments having granted a boon in the past and says that, due to that boon and the workings of māyā, death cannot come to him except through the agency of his sister’s son.
In many Purāṇic plots, a specially designated relative becomes the instrument through which a condition of a boon is fulfilled—here, the nephew is marked as the only means by which the speaker’s death can occur.
The verse highlights the gravity of granting boons without foresight and underscores how māyā (delusion) can lead to binding consequences that even powerful beings must later face.