Vamana Purana — Ritadhvaja Aids Galava, Shloka 10
Ritadhvaja’s Aid to Galava and Andhaka’s Infatuation with Gauri
पुलस्त्य उवाच विश्ववसुर्नाम महेन्द्रगायनो गन्धर्वराजो बलवान् यशस्वी निसृष्टवान् भूवलये तुरङ्गं ऋतध्वजस्यैव सुतार्थमाशु
pulastya uvāca viśvavasurnāma mahendragāyano gandharvarājo balavān yaśasvī nisṛṣṭavān bhūvalaye turaṅgaṃ ṛtadhvajasyaiva sutārthamāśu
Pulastya said: “There was a Gandharva king named Viśvavasu, a singer in the court of Mahendra (Indra), mighty and renowned. For the sake of Ṛtadhvaja’s son, he swiftly released a horse upon the surface of the earth.”
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FAQs
Viśvavasu is a well-known Gandharva figure across Purāṇic and epic literature, typically portrayed as a celestial musician. ‘Mahendra-gāyana’ marks him as one who sings in Mahendra/Indra’s assembly, emphasizing his prestige and proximity to the deva-court.
In many Itihāsa-Purāṇa contexts, a released horse can signal a royal enterprise—often connected with sovereignty, testing of power, or a ritual-political aim (e.g., aśvamedha-type motifs). Here the verse states it is ‘for the sake of Ṛtadhvaja’s son,’ indicating a targeted purpose within the prince’s story rather than a generic description.
Not yet. The verse uses a cosmographic generality (bhūvalaya) rather than naming a specific tirtha. In Vāmana Purāṇa, such narrative openings often precede later localization into named regions, rivers, or pilgrimage-sites.