Vamana Purana — Portents at Bali's Sacrifice, Shloka 45

Portents at Bali’s Sacrifice and the Kośakāra’s Son: The Power of Past Karma

Devanagari script

नैशाचरिर्दिवाकीर्तिर्निशाकीर्तिः स्वपुत्रकः तयोश्चकार विप्रो ऽसौ व्रतबन्धक्रियां क्रमात्

Transliteration

naiśācarirdivākīrtirniśākīrtiḥ svaputrakaḥ tayoścakāra vipro 'sau vratabandhakriyāṃ kramāt

Translation

That brāhmaṇa—(named) Naiśācari—performed, in due order, the rite of ‘vrata-bandha’ (initiation/upbringing into disciplined observance) for his own sons, Divākīrti and Niśākīrti.

Speakers

• Narrator to listener (frame not explicit in the excerpt).

Key Themes

• Saṃskāra (initiation/upanayana)
• Vratadharma (discipline through vows)
• Lineage continuity in a tirtha narrative

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

Is ‘vrata-bandha’ the same as upanayana?

In many Purāṇic usages, vrata-bandha denotes the formal binding of a boy to disciplined observances and study, overlapping with upanayana (sacred-thread initiation). The exact ritual details depend on local śrauta/smārta practice, but the narrative intent is clear: entry into regulated dharma and learning.

Why do the sons’ names shift from Niśākara/Divākara to Niśākīrti/Divākīrti?

Purāṇic transmission sometimes preserves variant name-forms across adjacent verses (recensional variation), or it may reflect a deliberate renaming at a saṃskāra—moving from cosmic identifiers (Moon/Sun) to virtue-identifiers (kīrti, ‘renown’).

What role does this saṃskāra play in a tirtha-mahātmya chapter?

Such rites establish the protagonists as dharmically qualified agents—fit to perform pilgrimages, sacrifices, donations, or to receive/teach the tirtha’s greatness. The geography-centered narrative often anchors later place-glorification in the lives of properly initiated brāhmaṇas.