Vamana Purana — Harihara Revelation, Shloka 72

Harihara Revelation and the Kurukshetra Tirtha Cycle: Sthanu in Vishnu and the Sanctification of Saptasarasvata

Devanagari script

एतत् तवोक्तं मुनिवर्य रूपं विभोः पुराणं मतिपुष्टिवर्धनम् चुतुर्भुजं तं स मुरुर्दुरात्मा कृतान्तवाक्यात् पुनराससाद

Transliteration

etat tavoktaṃ munivarya rūpaṃ vibhoḥ purāṇaṃ matipuṣṭivardhanam cuturbhujaṃ taṃ sa mururdurātmā kṛtāntavākyāt punarāsasāda

Translation

„O bester der Weisen! Dies ist die uralte Gestalt des allgegenwärtigen Herrn (Vibhu), die Einsicht nährt und vermehrt—jene vierarmige Gestalt. Der ruchlose Asura Mura, durch den Spruch des Kṛtānta (des Todes) gezwungen, näherte sich Ihm abermals.“

Word by Word

• etat: this (statement/thing)
• etat: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: etat (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd case), एकवचन; demonstrative pronoun

• tava: of you/your
• tava: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tvad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी (6th case, Genitive), एकवचन; pronoun

• uktam: said/spoken
• uktam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vac (धातु) + kta (कृत् प्रत्यय)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past passive participle); नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन

• muni-varya: O best of sages
• muni-varya: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: muni (प्रातिपदिक) + varya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: कर्मधारय-समास; पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th case, Vocative), एकवचन

• rūpam: form
• rūpam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rūpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन

• vibhoḥ: of the Lord
• vibhoḥ: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vibhu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (Genitive), एकवचन

• purāṇam: ancient, puranic
• purāṇam: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: purāṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; adjective qualifying rūpam/etat

• mati-puṣṭi-vardhanam: increasing mental strength/nourishment
• mati-puṣṭi-vardhanam: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mati (प्रातिपदिक) + puṣṭi (प्रातिपदिक) + vardhana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (mati-puṣṭeḥ vardhanam); नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन

• catur-bhujam: four-armed
• catur-bhujam: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: catur (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक) + bhuja (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: द्विगु-समास; नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन

• tam: him/that one
• tam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (Accusative), एकवचन

• saḥ: he
• saḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (Nominative), एकवचन

• muruḥ: Muru
• muruḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: muru (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; proper name

• dur-ātmā: evil-souled one
• dur-ātmā: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dur (उपसर्ग/अव्यय) + ātman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: कर्मधारय-समास; पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• kṛtānta-vākyāt: from the words of Death (Yama)
• kṛtānta-vākyāt: Apādāna (अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṛtānta (प्रातिपदिक) + vākya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (kṛtāntasya vākyam); नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (Ablative), एकवचन

• punar: again
• punar: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: punar (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; क्रियाविशेषण (adverb)

• āsasāda: approached/attacked
• āsasāda: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sad (धातु) with ā- (उपसर्ग)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन

Speakers

• Narrator voice within the Purāṇic dialogue (contextually continuing the sage-to-sage narration of the Andhaka cycle).

Primary Deities

• Vishnu

Key Themes

• Inevitability of fate (Kṛtānta)
• Iconic theology of Viṣṇu (Caturbhuja form)
• Asura opposition and return to conflict
• Purāṇic didactic framing (form that increases understanding)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

Why is Viṣṇu’s form called ‘purāṇa’ and ‘matipuṣṭivardhana’ here?

‘Purāṇa’ signals the Lord’s primeval, timeless form; ‘matipuṣṭivardhana’ frames the description as spiritually and intellectually edifying—seeing/knowing the Lord’s true form is presented as a source of right understanding (mati) in Purāṇic theology.

What does ‘kṛtānta-vākyāt’ imply about Mura’s agency?

It suggests Mura’s renewed approach is driven by inevitability—Death/fate’s ‘decree’—a common Purāṇic motif where even powerful asuras move toward their destined end, highlighting divine sovereignty over outcomes.

Is any tīrtha or geographic setting indicated in this verse?

No. Despite the Vāmana Purāṇa’s strong geographic orientation elsewhere, this śloka is purely narrative-theological and contains no explicit sacred-geography markers.