Vamana Purana — Ritadhvaja Aids Galava, Shloka 35

Ritadhvaja’s Aid to Galava and Andhaka’s Infatuation with Gauri

Devanagari script

ततः स देवीगणमध्यसंस्थितः परिभ्रमन्न भाति महासुरेन्द्रः यथा वने मत्तकरी परिभ्रमन् करेणुमध्ये मदलोलदृष्टिः

Transliteration

tataḥ sa devīgaṇamadhyasaṃsthitaḥ paribhramanna bhāti mahāsurendraḥ yathā vane mattakarī paribhraman kareṇumadhye madaloladṛṣṭiḥ

Translation

Then that great lord of the Asuras, standing amid the retinue of the Goddess, wandered about, yet did not truly perceive what was before him—like an intoxicated bull-elephant roaming in a forest among the female elephants, his gaze unsteady with rut.

Word by Word

• ततः: then / thereafter
• ततः: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; काल/क्रमवाचक (adverb: then/thereafter)

• सः: he
• सः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• देवी-गण-मध्य-संस्थितः: standing in the midst of the host of goddesses
• देवी-गण-मध्य-संस्थितः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: देवी (प्रातिपदिक) + गण (प्रातिपदिक) + मध्य (प्रातिपदिक) + संस्थित (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (PPP) ‘संस्थित’; पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (देवीगणस्य मध्ये संस्थितः)

• परिभ्रमन्: wandering about
• परिभ्रमन्: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: परि + √भ्रम् (धातु) → परिभ्रमन् (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: शतृ/वर्तमानकृदन्त (present participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• न: not
• न: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेध-अव्यय (negation particle)

• भाति: shines / appears
• भाति: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √भा (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• महासुरेन्द्रः: the great lord of demons
• महासुरेन्द्रः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महा (प्रातिपदिक) + असुरेन्द्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; समासः—कर्मधारयः (महान् असुरेन्द्रः)

• यथा: as / like
• यथा: Upamana (उपमान)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; उपमानवाचक (comparative particle: as/like)

• वने: in the forest
• वने: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन

• मत्त-करि: a maddened female elephant
• मत्त-करि: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मत्त (प्रातिपदिक) + करि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; समासः—कर्मधारयः (मत्ता करिः)

• परिभ्रमन्: wandering about
• परिभ्रमन्: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: परि + √भ्रम् (धातु) → परिभ्रमन् (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: शतृ/वर्तमानकृदन्त, स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; (मत्तकरि इति)

• करेणु-मध्ये: among the female elephants
• करेणु-मध्ये: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: करेणु (प्रातिपदिक) + मध्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (करेणूनां मध्ये)

• मद-लोल-दृष्टिः: she whose gaze is unsteady with intoxication
• मद-लोल-दृष्टिः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मद (प्रातिपदिक) + लोल (प्रातिपदिक) + दृष्टि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; समासः—बहुव्रीहिः (मदेन लोला दृष्टिः यस्याः सा)

Speakers

• Narrator (Purāṇic narrator) describing Andhaka within the Devī’s entourage/context

Primary Deities

• Śiva
• Pārvatī (Girijā/Devī)

Key Themes

• Andhaka’s delusion and moral blindness
• Power of desire/intoxication as a metaphor
• Devīgaṇa and the divine retinue
• Prelude to conflict in Andhaka narrative

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

{ "primaryRasa": "bibhatsa", "secondaryRasa": "bhayanaka", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }

FAQs

Why is Andhaka compared to an intoxicated elephant among female elephants?

The simile conveys uncontrolled desire and impaired discernment. As a rut-maddened elephant cannot distinguish danger or propriety, Andhaka—overpowered by passion—moves among the Devī’s attendants without true awareness of the sacred boundary he is violating.

What does “na bhāti” imply here—lack of radiance or lack of understanding?

In context it functions as a cognition metaphor: ‘it does not become manifest to him.’ The scene before him (the divine order, the identity of Girijā, the sanctity of the Devīgaṇa) fails to ‘shine’ in his mind due to delusion.

Does this verse contain any specific sacred geography typical of the Vāmana Purāṇa?

No. It uses only a generic setting (‘forest’) as a poetic comparison; the verse is narrative-psychological rather than tīrtha-topographical.