Vamana Purana — Chanda & Munda Discover Katyayani, Shloka 44

Chanda and Munda Discover Katyayani; Mahishasura’s Proposal and the Vishnu-Panjara Protection

Devanagari script

एवंप्रभावो द्विज विष्णुपञ्जरः सर्वासु रक्षास्वधिको हि गीतः कस्तस्य कुर्याद् युधि दर्फहानिं यस्य स्थितश्चेतसि चक्रपाणिः

Transliteration

evaṃprabhāvo dvija viṣṇupañjaraḥ sarvāsu rakṣāsvadhiko hi gītaḥ kastasya kuryād yudhi darphahāniṃ yasya sthitaścetasi cakrapāṇiḥ

Translation

O Zweimalgeborener, so groß ist die Macht des „Viṣṇu-pañjara“; es wird als das höchste unter allen Schutzmitteln besungen. Wer könnte im Kampf Niederlage bringen oder den Stolz brechen bei dem, in dessen Herzen Cakrapāṇi (Viṣṇu) fest gegründet ist?

Word by Word

• evam-prabhāvaḥ: of such power
• evam-prabhāvaḥ: Karta (कर्ता/subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: evam (अव्यय) + prabhāva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष समास ('of such power'); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा विभक्ति, एकवचन

• dvija: O twice-born (Brāhmaṇa)
• dvija: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dvija (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (Vocative), एकवचन

• viṣṇu-pañjaraḥ: the Viṣṇu-pañjara (protective charm)
• viṣṇu-pañjaraḥ: Karta (कर्ता/subject-apposition)
• Type: Noun
• Root: viṣṇu (प्रातिपदिक) + pañjara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष समास (genitive: 'Viṣṇu’s enclosure'); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा विभक्ति, एकवचन

• sarvāsu: in all
• sarvāsu: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी विभक्ति (Loc./7th), बहुवचन; rakṣāsu इति विशेषणम्

• rakṣāsu: in protections/defences
• rakṣāsu: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण/location)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rakṣā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी विभक्ति (Loc./7th), बहुवचन

• adhikaḥ: superior
• adhikaḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण/predicate adj.)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: adhika (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा विभक्ति, एकवचन; viṣṇu-pañjaraḥ इति विशेषणम्

• hi: indeed
• hi: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: hi (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (emphatic particle)

• gītaḥ: is proclaimed
• gītaḥ: Kriyā (क्रिया/participial predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: gai (धातु)
• Form: कृदन्त (past passive participle/क्त), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा विभक्ति, एकवचन; 'sung/declared'

• kaḥ: who?
• kaḥ: Karta (कर्ता/subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kim (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम (interrogative), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा विभक्ति, एकवचन

• tasya: of him/of that (person)
• tasya: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/possessor)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, पुं/नपुंसक, षष्ठी विभक्ति (Gen./6th), एकवचन

• kuryāt: could do/make
• kuryāt: Kriyā (क्रिया/finite verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: kṛ (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन, परस्मैपद

• yudhi: in battle
• yudhi: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण/location)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yudh (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी विभक्ति (Loc./7th), एकवचन

• darpa-hānim: loss of pride/defeat
• darpa-hānim: Karma (कर्म/object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: darpa (प्रातिपदिक) + hāni (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष समास ('loss of pride'); स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया विभक्ति (Acc./2nd), एकवचन

• yasya: whose
• yasya: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/relative)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम (relative pronoun), पुं/नपुंसक, षष्ठी विभक्ति (Gen./6th), एकवचन

• sthitaḥ: abides/is present
• sthitaḥ: Kriyā (क्रिया/participial predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sthā (धातु)
• Form: कृदन्त (past active participle/क्त in intransitive sense), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा विभक्ति, एकवचन; 'standing/abiding'

• cetasi: in the mind
• cetasi: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण/location)
• Type: Noun
• Root: cetas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी विभक्ति (Loc./7th), एकवचन

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (conjunction)

• cakra-pāṇiḥ: Viṣṇu (the discus-handed)
• cakra-pāṇiḥ: Karta (कर्ता/subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: cakra (प्रातिपदिक) + pāṇi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: बहुव्रीहि समास ('he whose hand holds a discus'); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा विभक्ति, एकवचन

Speakers

• Narrator addressing a brāhmaṇa (dvija); broader dialogue-frame likely Pulastya → Nārada (verification needed).

Primary Deities

• Viṣṇu (Cakrapāṇi)

Key Themes

• Bhakti
• Mantra/Kavaca (Protective Rite)
• Inner Presence of the Divine (antaryāmin motif)
• Vaishnavism
• Spiritual Courage

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

What is the philosophical or ethical takeaway?

True fearlessness is rooted in inner alignment: when Viṣṇu is ‘established in the heart,’ external threats lose their power. The verse also implies ethical restraint—confidence (darpa) becomes steady courage when grounded in devotion rather than ego.

How does this fit the Pancalakṣaṇa?

This is a stuti-style didactic conclusion attached to an ākhyāna (narrative exemplum). It supports Purāṇic instruction (dharma/upanaya) rather than genealogies or creation cycles.

What is the symbolic significance?

The ‘pañjara’ (cage/armor) is symbolic of a consecrated boundary of consciousness. ‘Cakrapāṇi in the heart’ indicates the divine order (cakra) governing the inner life; when that order is present, the forces of chaos cannot ‘break’ one in the field of action (yuddha).