Shloka 169
Narasiṃha’s Greatness and the Slaying of Hiraṇyakaśipu
Boon, Portents, and Cosmic Restoration
विद्युत्त्वान्पर्वतः श्रीमानायतः शतयोजनम् । विद्युतां यत्र संपाता निपात्यंते नगोत्तमे
vidyuttvānparvataḥ śrīmānāyataḥ śatayojanam | vidyutāṃ yatra saṃpātā nipātyaṃte nagottame
Es gibt einen prächtigen Berg namens Vidyuttvān, der sich über hundert Yojanas erstreckt; auf diesem erhabensten Berge sieht man Scharen von Blitzen niederfahren und einschlagen.
Unspecified (narrative description within the chapter; traditional Sṛṣṭikhaṇḍa dialogue context often involves Pulastya instructing Bhīṣma, but this verse alone does not explicitly mark the speaker).
Concept: Power without steadiness is perilous; approach intense forces—outer or inner—with humility, preparation, and ethical grounding.
Application: When anger, ambition, or sensory overload ‘strikes like lightning,’ pause, ground in mantra/breath, and choose restraint over reaction.
Primary Rasa: adbhuta
Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka
Type: mountain
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A massive, elongated mountain stretches across the horizon like a dark spine, its cliffs veined with glowing mineral seams. Repeated forks of lightning crash onto its summit and ridges, illuminating storm clouds in brief flashes while the surrounding air shimmers with charged mist, making the place feel both sacred and forbidding.","primary_figures":["personified Vidyut (lightning spirit) (optional)","storm deities (Indra’s presence implied, optional)"],"setting":"Storm-wrapped mountain range, high altitude, jagged ridgelines, charged atmosphere","lighting_mood":"thunderstorm flashes","color_palette":["charcoal black","electric violet","steel blue","silver-white","ashen gray"],"tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore painting style: dramatic storm mountain with embossed gold accents used sparingly as lightning highlights; deep reds and blacks in clouds, stylized wave-like storm patterns; central peak crowned by repeated lightning motifs, ornate border framing the tempest as a divine spectacle.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari miniature style: refined depiction of storm clouds with delicate gradations; thin, sharp lightning lines; mountain rendered in layered blues and grays, misty atmosphere, minimal figures to emphasize sublime nature power.","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural style: bold black outlines for jagged peaks; flat fields of dark blue/gray; stylized lightning as rhythmic white-yellow zigzags; dramatic, temple-wall intensity with patterned cloud bands.","pichwai_prompt":"Pichwai cloth painting style: decorative storm mandala—mountain centered with symmetrical lightning motifs; intricate border of cloud-scrolls; deep indigo ground with silver-white lightning and small floral accents to contrast ferocity with sacred ornament."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"dramatic","suggested_raga":"Durga","pace":"fast-dramatic","voice_tone":"authoritative","sound_elements":["thunder","wind gusts","distant conch","low drum pulse"]}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: विद्युत्त्वान् = विद्युत् + त्वान्; श्रीमानायतः = श्रीमान् + आयतः; शतयोजनम् = शत-योजनम् (द्विगु); नगोत्तमे = नग-उत्तमे; निपात्यंते (पाठ) → निपात्यन्ते (सन्धि/लिप्यन्तर-समायोजन).
FAQs
It presents a cosmographic description of a named mountain (Vidyuttvān) with a specific measure (hundred yojanas), typical of Purāṇic mapping of the world through notable peaks, regions, and phenomena.
No explicit bhakti instruction appears here; the verse functions primarily as descriptive geography/cosmography. Any devotional application would be contextual, drawn from the surrounding narrative rather than this line alone.
The repeated striking of lightning on the “best of mountains” can be read as emphasizing the awe-inspiring power of nature within a divinely ordered cosmos, encouraging humility and attentiveness to sacred descriptions in Purāṇic literature.