Vamana Purana — Shukra's Curse on King Danda, Shloka 22

Shukra’s Curse on King Danda and Andhaka’s Challenge to Shiva

Devanagari script

तास्तमूचुर्महामत्स्यं किं न पस्यसि गालवम् तापसं कन्यकाभ्यां वै विचरन्तं यथेच्छया

Transliteration

tāstamūcurmahāmatsyaṃ kiṃ na pasyasi gālavam tāpasaṃ kanyakābhyāṃ vai vicarantaṃ yathecchayā

Translation

Sie sprachen zu dem großen Fisch: „Siehst du nicht den Asketen Gālava, der nach Belieben umherwandert, zusammen mit zwei Jungfrauen?“

Speakers

• Unspecified female speakers (tāḥ; likely the two maidens or women present in the episode) addressing the Mahāmatsya (great fish).

Key Themes

• Narrative episode (upākhyāna)
• Ascetic conduct and perception
• Association with maidens (kanyā) as a test/point of critique
• Seeing/recognition as a moral-spiritual motif

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

{ "primaryRasa": "adbhuta", "secondaryRasa": "hasya", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }

FAQs

Who is being addressed as ‘mahāmatsya’ and why is a fish part of the dialogue?

The verse frames a conversation with a ‘great fish’ (mahāmatsya), a common Purāṇic narrative device where non-human beings participate in moral discourse. Here it functions as a witness/participant whose perception (or lack of it) becomes the focus.

Why is Gālava described as wandering ‘with two maidens’?

The detail foregrounds a tension between outward appearance and inner dharma. In Purāṇic storytelling, proximity to objects of desire can be used to test or critique an ascetic’s steadiness, or to expose the speaker’s own assumptions.

Does this verse contain geographical (tīrtha) data typical of the Vāmana Purāṇa?

Not in this śloka. Although the Vāmana Purāṇa often embeds narratives within sacred geography, this particular line is purely situational and does not name a river, lake, forest, or tīrtha.