Vamana Purana — Shukra's Curse on King Danda, Shloka 81

Shukra’s Curse on King Danda and Andhaka’s Challenge to Shiva

Devanagari script

तस्यास्तद् वचनं श्रुत्वा सकपिः प्राह बालिकाम् दृष्टा देववती नाम्ना मया न्यस्ता महाश्रमे

Transliteration

tasyāstad vacanaṃ śrutvā sakapiḥ prāha bālikām dṛṣṭā devavatī nāmnā mayā nyastā mahāśrame

Translation

Hearing her words, the monkey replied: “I have seen the maiden named Devavatī; I have left her in a great hermitage (āśrama).”

Speakers

• Kapi (monkey) to Apsarā

Key Themes

• Identification of the missing person (Devavatī)
• Āśrama as protective sacred space
• Narrative transition toward a named tīrtha setting

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

What does “nyastā” imply—abandonment or protection?

Nyastā commonly means ‘placed/left/entrusted.’ In Purāṇic idiom, placing someone in an āśrama typically implies safeguarding under ascetic protection rather than abandonment.

Is “mahāśrama” a specific place or a generic description?

In this verse it reads as a descriptive term (‘great hermitage’). The next verse supplies the clearer geographical anchoring (Kālindī tīrtha; Śrakaṇṭha-āyatana).

Why is the girl’s name (Devavatī) important in a tīrtha section?

Named figures often serve as etiological anchors: their actions, rescue, or transformation becomes the narrative cause for a tīrtha’s fame, ritual prescription, or merit (puṇya) described in the surrounding passage.