Vamana Purana — Shukra's Samjivani, Shloka 48

Shukra’s Saṃjīvanī, Shiva’s Containment of the Asuras, and Indra’s Recovery of Power

Devanagari script

अन्धको नन्दिनं युद्धं शङ्कुकर्णं त्वयःशिराः कुम्भध्वजं बलिर्धीमान् नन्दिषेणं विरोचनः

Transliteration

andhako nandinaṃ yuddhaṃ śaṅkukarṇaṃ tvayaḥśirāḥ kumbhadhvajaṃ balirdhīmān nandiṣeṇaṃ virocanaḥ

Translation

Andhaka kämpfte gegen Nandin; Śaṅkukarṇa gegen Tvayaḥśiras; der weise Bali gegen Kumbhadhvaja; und Virocana gegen Nandiṣeṇa.

Speakers

• Narrator continuing the battle catalogue to the ascetic interlocutor (‘tapodhana’ from prior verse)

Primary Deities

• Shiva (implied via Nandin and gaṇas)

Key Themes

• Cataloguing of champions
• Heroic single combats
• Shaiva mythic cycle (Andhaka)
• Daitya lineages (Bali, Virocana)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

Why are Bali and Virocana present in an Andhaka battle sequence?

Purāṇic battle catalogues often assemble prominent Daitya figures across lineages to magnify the scale of the conflict. Bali and Virocana function as emblematic Daitya champions, even when the central antagonist is Andhaka.

Is Nandin here the bull (vṛṣabha) or a person?

In this context Nandin is a personal attendant/commander of Śiva’s gaṇas (often associated with the bull emblem). The verse frames him as a duel opponent, indicating an anthropomorphic combatant rather than merely an animal mount.

Do these names encode any geographic/tīrtha information?

No explicit rivers, forests, or tīrthas occur. The names are martial epithets (e.g., Kumbhadhvaja) and proper names of combatants, not toponyms.