Vamana Purana — Karmic Causes of Narakas, Shloka 49
Karmic Causes of Narakas and the Irremediability of Ingratitude (Kṛtaghna-doṣa)
तेजस्विनां यद्वदिहार्क उक्तो ऋक्षेषु चन्द्रो जलधिर्ह्वदेषु भवान् यथा राक्षससत्तमेषु पाशेषु नागस्तिमितेषु बन्धः
tejasvināṃ yadvadihārka ukto ṛkṣeṣu candro jaladhirhvadeṣu bhavān yathā rākṣasasattameṣu pāśeṣu nāgastimiteṣu bandhaḥ
Just as among the radiant ones the Sun is declared supreme here; among the constellations, the Moon; and among lakes and waters, the ocean—so too you are supreme among the best of Rākṣasas. Among snares and bonds (pāśa) the Nāga, the serpent, is foremost; and among what is motionless, bondage (bandha) predominates.
{ "primaryRasa": "vira", "secondaryRasa": "adbhuta", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }
FAQs
The verse uses ranked exemplars to teach discernment (viveka): within any domain there is a ‘principal’ that sets the standard; the listener is urged to recognize what is truly primary in a given sphere.
It is rhetorical/didactic praise rather than sarga/pratisarga/vaṃśa/manvantara/vaṃśānucarita proper; it likely serves as an introductory or transitional stuti within the chapter’s instruction.
Sun/Moon/ocean symbolize unsurpassed centrality in their respective systems; the final ‘bandha’ image hints that bondage is the defining feature of inert existence—implicitly motivating the pursuit of liberating knowledge aligned with higher authority.