Vamana Purana — Slaying of Raktabija, Shloka 9

The Slaying of Raktabīja and Niśumbha–Śumbha; the Manifestation of the Mātṛkās and the Devas’ Hymn

Devanagari script

विक्षिपन्ती सटाक्षेपैर्ग्रहनक्षत्रतारकाः नखिनी हृदयाज्जाता नारसिंही सुदारुणा

Transliteration

vikṣipantī saṭākṣepairgrahanakṣatratārakāḥ nakhinī hṛdayājjātā nārasiṃhī sudāruṇā

Translation

With tosses of her mane she scattered the planets, lunar mansions, and stars. Clawed and fierce, Nārasiṃhī—most dreadful—was born from the heart.

Word by Word

• विक्षिपन्ती: scattering
• विक्षिपन्ती: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वि√क्षिप् (धातु) → विक्षिपत् (कृदन्त; शतृ)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; वर्तमानकृदन्त (शतृ) 'scattering/throwing about'

• सट-आक्षेपैः: with tossings of (her) mane
• सट-आक्षेपैः: Karaṇa (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सट (प्रातिपदिक) + आक्षेप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (करण), बहुवचन; तत्पुरुषः—'सटायाः आक्षेपैः' (mane-tossings)

• ग्रह-नक्षत्र-तारकाः: planets, constellations, and stars
• ग्रह-नक्षत्र-तारकाः: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ग्रह (प्रातिपदिक) + नक्षत्र (प्रातिपदिक) + तारका (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (कर्म), बहुवचन; द्वन्द्वः—'ग्रहाश्च नक्षत्राणि च तारकाः च' (समूहः)

• नखिनी: clawed
• नखिनी: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: नखिन्/नखिन्ī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; 'clawed, having nails'

• हृदयात्: from the heart
• हृदयात्: Apādāna (अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: हृदय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी-विभक्ति (अपादान), एकवचन; 'from the heart'

• जाता: was born/manifested
• जाता: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: जात (कृदन्त; √जन् धातु)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्तः, क्रियार्थे

• नारसिंही: Nārasiṃhī
• नारसिंही: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नारसिंही (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; 'Nārasiṃhī'

• सु-दारुणा: very dreadful
• सु-दारुणा: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सु (उपसर्ग/अव्यय) + दारुण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; कर्मधारयः—'अत्यन्तं दारुणा'

Speakers

• Narrator voice within the Andhaka-vadha cycle (explicit interlocutors not stated in the given excerpt).

Primary Deities

• Śiva
• Śakti (Nārasiṃhī)
• Viṣṇu (implicit via Narasiṃha correspondence)

Key Themes

• Cosmic scale of divine wrath
• Mātr̥kā/Nārasiṃhī iconography (mane, claws)
• Mythic hyperbole as theological statement

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

Is the scattering of planets and stars meant literally or poetically?

Primarily poetically (alaṅkāra), to indicate that her energy is not merely battlefield-level but cosmic in magnitude—capable of disturbing the very order (ṛta-like regularity) represented by grahas and nakṣatras.

Why does Nārasiṃhī emerge from the heart (hṛdaya)?

The heart is a locus of inner power, resolve, and essential being. Nārasiṃhī’s emergence from the heart signals the eruption of concentrated, decisive ferocity—an uncompromising force that ends demonic excess.

How does Nārasiṃhī relate to Viṣṇu’s Narasiṃha avatāra in a Śaiva narrative?

Purāṇas often transpose avatāra-energies into Devī’s or Śiva’s battle retinues as Śakti-forms (Mātr̥kās). This preserves the recognizable Narasiṃha signature (mane, claws, terror) while situating it within the Śaiva mythic economy of Andhaka’s defeat.