Vamana Purana — Akhanda Ekadashi Vrata, Shloka 64
Akhaṇḍa-Ekādaśī Vrata and the Vaiṣṇava Protective Hymn; Prelude to the Kātyāyanī–Mahiṣāsura Narrative
तेनापि दैत्यस्तीक्ष्णाभ्यां शृङ्गाभ्यां हृदि ताडितः निर्भिन्नहृदयो भूमौ निपपात ममार च / 18.63 मृते भर्तरि सा श्यामा यक्षाणां शरणं गता रक्षिता गुह्यकैः साध्वी निवार्य महिषं ततः
tenāpi daityastīkṣṇābhyāṃ śṛṅgābhyāṃ hṛdi tāḍitaḥ nirbhinnahṛdayo bhūmau nipapāta mamāra ca / 18.63 mṛte bhartari sā śyāmā yakṣāṇāṃ śaraṇaṃ gatā rakṣitā guhyakaiḥ sādhvī nivārya mahiṣaṃ tataḥ
He (the buffalo) struck the Daitya in the chest with his two sharp horns. With his heart pierced, the Daitya fell to the ground and died. When her husband had died, that dark-complexioned woman sought refuge among the Yakṣas; the sādhvī was protected by the Guhyakas, who then restrained the buffalo.
{ "primaryRasa": "vira", "secondaryRasa": "karuna", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }
FAQs
Adharma rebounds upon the aggressor: the one who initiates violence meets a swift end, while the sādhvī is safeguarded—suggesting that moral integrity attracts protection (human or superhuman).
Carita (exemplary narrative) with didactic intent; it is not primarily sarga/pratisarga but a moralizing episode embedded in the larger Purāṇic frame.
The horns piercing the heart symbolize dharma’s ‘sharp’ corrective force. The Yakṣa/Guhyaka refuge motif encodes the idea of cosmic guardianship: liminal beings (Yakṣas) uphold order by protecting virtue and restraining uncontrolled animal/violent impulses.