Vamana Purana — Nara-Narayana's Tapas, Shloka 95

Nara-Narayana’s Tapas, Indra’s Temptation, and the Burning of Kama: The Origin of Ananga and the Shiva-Linga Episode

Devanagari script

ततस्तमग्रतो दृष्ट्वा क्रोधाध्मातदृशा हरः स्मरमालोकयामास शिखाग्राच्चरणान्तिकम्

Transliteration

tatastamagrato dṛṣṭvā krodhādhmātadṛśā haraḥ smaramālokayāmāsa śikhāgrāccaraṇāntikam

Translation

Dann, als er ihn vor sich sah, blickte Hara—dessen Augen vor Zorn geschwollen waren—Smara (Kāma) vom Scheitelknoten bis hinab zu den Füßen an.

Word by Word

• tatas: then
• tatas: Kala (काल/Discourse)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatas (अव्यय)
• Form: क्रम/हेतुवाचक अव्यय (then/thereupon)

• tam: him (Kāma)
• tam: Karma (कर्म/Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं, द्वितीया, एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• agrataḥ: in front
• agrataḥ: Desha (देश/Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: agrataḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: स्थानवाचक अव्यय (in front)

• dṛṣṭvā: having seen
• dṛṣṭvā: Kriya (क्रिया/Absolutive)
• Type: Verb
• Root: dṛś (धातु) + tvā (क्त्वा)
• Form: क्त्वान्त अव्ययकृदन्त (gerund)

• krodhādhmātadṛśā: with anger-swollen eyes
• krodhādhmātadṛśā: Karana (करण/Instrument)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: krodha-adhmāta-dṛś (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन; विशेषण—करणे (with eyes swollen with anger)

• haraḥ: Hara (Śiva)
• haraḥ: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: hara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; शिवनाम

• smaram: Smara (Kāma)
• smaram: Karma (कर्म/Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: smara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• ālokayāmāsa: looked at, beheld
• ālokayāmāsa: Kriya (क्रिया/Finite verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ā-√lok (धातु) caus. ālokay (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद; causative stem

• śikhāgrāt: from the tip of the crest/topknot
• śikhāgrāt: Apadana (अपादान/Ablative-source)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śikhā-agra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th/Ablative), एकवचन; आरम्भबिन्दु (from the tip)

• caraṇāntikam: up to the feet/near the feet
• caraṇāntikam: Karma (कर्म/Extent)
• Type: Noun
• Root: caraṇa-antika (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; गत्यर्थे लक्ष्य (up to)

Speakers

• Narrator describing events (dialogue frame not explicit in input)

Primary Deities

• Śiva
• Kāma (Smara)

Key Themes

• Shaivism
• Tapas vs Desire
• Divine Wrath (ugra aspect)
• Ethics of Self-Mastery

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

What is the philosophical or ethical takeaway?

Desire that attempts to disturb concentrated consciousness meets discerning awareness. The ‘measuring gaze’ implies scrutiny: impulses are to be seen fully—beginning to end—rather than indulged blindly.

How does this fit the Pancalakshana?

Deva-carita within narrative (vaṃśānucarita-type divine episode). It also supports dharma teaching indirectly by dramatizing conquest of kāma (one of the inner enemies) through higher discipline.

What is the symbolic significance?

Śiva’s gaze from ‘topknot to feet’ symbolizes total comprehension and sovereign control over the field of embodiment. In the broader Kāma-dahana motif, the gaze foreshadows transformation of desire—either its destruction as distraction or its sublimation into spiritual power.