Vamana Purana — Jabali on the Banyan Tree, Shloka 51

Jabali Bound on the Banyan Tree and Nandayanti’s Appeal at Sri-Kantha on the Yamuna

Devanagari script

किं त्वया न पिरज्ञातं तस्मात् ते कथयाम्यहम् तदा तया तु तन्वङ्ग्या सुरथस्य महीपतेः

Transliteration

kiṃ tvayā na pirajñātaṃ tasmāt te kathayāmyaham tadā tayā tu tanvaṅgyā surathasya mahīpateḥ

Translation

¿Qué es lo que tú no has comprendido? Por eso te lo explicaré. Entonces, aquella doncella de miembros esbeltos (tanvaṅgī), en relación con el rey Suratha…

Word by Word

• किम्: what
• किम्: Karma (कर्म/Object; of ‘known’)
• Type: Noun
• Root: किम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Nominative/Accusative (1st/2nd), Singular (एकवचन); interrogative pronoun

• त्वया: by you
• त्वया: Kartr-karana (कर्ता-करण; agent in passive sense)
• Type: Noun
• Root: युष्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Pronoun, Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Singular (एकवचन)

• न: not
• न: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: Negation particle (निषेध-निपात)

• प्रि-रज्ञातम्: known/understood
• प्रि-रज्ञातम्: Karma (कर्म/Object; ‘known’)
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्र-ज्ञा (धातु)
• Form: Past Passive Participle (कर्मणि क्त), Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Nominative/Accusative (1st/2nd), Singular (एकवचन); text reading ‘pirajñātaṃ’ understood as ‘prirajñātaṃ’ ≈ ‘prajñātam’ (प्रज्ञातम्)

• तस्मात्: therefore
• तस्मात्: Hetu (हेतु/Cause)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Ablatival adverb (तस्मात्-प्रयोगः): ‘therefore’

• ते: to you
• ते: Sampradana (सम्प्रदान/Recipient)
• Type: Noun
• Root: युष्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Pronoun, Dative (4th/चतुर्थी), Singular (एकवचन)

• कथयामि: I tell
• कथयामि: Kriya (क्रिया/Main verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: कथय् (धातु)
• Form: Present (लट्), 1st person (उत्तमपुरुष), Singular (एकवचन), Parasmaipada (परस्मैपद)

• अहम्: I
• अहम्: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Pronoun, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular (एकवचन)

• तदा: then
• तदा: Kala (काल/Time)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तदा (अव्यय)
• Form: Adverb (कालवाचक-अव्यय): ‘then’

• तया: by her
• तया: Karana (करण/Instrument)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine (स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Singular (एकवचन)

• तु: indeed/but
• तु: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: Particle (निपात)

• तनु-अङ्ग्या: by the slender-limbed (woman)
• तनु-अङ्ग्या: Visheshana (विशेषण/Qualifier of तया)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तनु (प्रातिपदिक) + अङ्ग (प्रातिपदिक) + ङीप् (स्त्रीप्रत्यय)
• Form: Feminine (स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Singular (एकवचन); बहुव्रीहिः ‘she whose limbs are slender’

• सुरथस्य: of Suratha
• सुरथस्य: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Possessor)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सुरथ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Genitive (6th/षष्ठी), Singular (एकवचन)

• महीपतेः: of the king
• महीपतेः: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Possessor)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मही (प्रातिपदिक) + पति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Genitive (6th/षष्ठी), Singular (एकवचन); समासः षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष ‘lord of the earth’

Speakers

• Narrator/teacher figure addressing a listener (exact interlocutors not specified in the excerpt; typical Purāṇic frame is a sage explaining to a disciple).

Key Themes

• Narrative transition
• Explanation of prior events
• Royal-ethical context (king Suratha)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

Why does the verse begin with a rhetorical question (“What have you not understood?”)?

This is a common Purāṇic pedagogical device: the speaker marks a shift from summary to clarification, indicating that the listener’s doubt (saṃśaya) will be resolved by a more detailed account.

Who is “tanvaṅgī” here?

Tanvaṅgī is an epithet for a young woman central to the episode; the following verses show she becomes the agent of a curse connected with Suratha’s marital situation.

Does this verse contain any tīrtha or geographic marker typical of the Vāmana Purāṇa?

Not in this line; it functions as a narrative hinge. Geographic/tīrtha data must be extracted from surrounding verses when present.