Vamana Purana — Vishnu's Sleep (Ashunya-Shayana), Shloka 53

The Caturmasya Observances and the Rite of Vishnu’s Sleep (Aśūnya-Śayana) and Shiva’s Monthly Vows

Devanagari script

धूपं सर्जाज्ययुक्तं च नैवेद्यं सफलं घृतम् नामजप्यमपीशस्य कालघ्नेति विपश्चिता

Transliteration

dhūpaṃ sarjājyayuktaṃ ca naivedyaṃ saphalaṃ ghṛtam nāmajapyamapīśasya kālaghneti vipaścitā

Translation

On doit offrir un encens mêlé de résine de sarja et de ghṛta (ghee), et un naivedya fait de ghṛta accompagné de fruits. Même la répétition (japa) des noms du Seigneur Īśa—ainsi l’affirment les sages—devient « kālaghna », destructeur de Kāla, le Temps (mort ou sort funeste).

Word by Word

• धूपम्: incense
• धूपम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: धूप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular; item to be offered

• सर्ज-अज्य-युक्तम्: mixed with sarja-resin and ghee
• सर्ज-अज्य-युक्तम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्ज + अज्य + युक्त (क्त-प्रत्ययान्त, √युज्)
• Form: Neuter, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular; qualifies dhūpam; compound: सर्जेण अज्येन च युक्तम् (instrumental sense)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: Conjunction/particle (समुच्चयबोधक अव्यय)

• नैवेद्यम्: food-offering (naivedya)
• नैवेद्यम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नैवेद्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular; item to be offered

• स-फलम्: with fruit
• स-फलम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: स (अव्यय) + फल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular; qualifies naivedyam/ghṛtam; ‘with fruit’

• घृतम्: ghee
• घृतम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: घृत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular; item to be offered

• नाम-जप्यम्: name-recitation (to be chanted)
• नाम-जप्यम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नामन् + जप्य (तव्यत्/यत्-प्रत्ययान्त from √जप्)
• Form: Neuter, Nominative/Accusative Singular; gerundive (यत्): ‘to be recited’; तत्पुरुष: नाम्नः जप्यम्

• अपि: also
• अपि: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि (अव्यय)
• Form: Particle (समुच्चय/अप्यर्थक अव्यय)

• ईशस्य: of the Lord
• ईशस्य: Sambandha (षष्ठी-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ईश (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Genitive (6th/षष्ठी), Singular; ‘of the Lord’

• कालघ्न: O Destroyer of Time (Kālaghna)
• कालघ्न: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कालघ्न (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Vocative (8th/सम्बोधन), Singular; name/epithet used in mantra; तत्पुरुष: कालं हन्ति इति

• इति: thus
• इति: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/quotation marker)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इति (अव्यय)
• Form: Quotative particle (इति-प्रयोग)

• विपश्चिता: by the wise one
• विपश्चिता: Karta (कर्ता/कर्ता-करण in passive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विपश्चित् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Singular; agent-instrument in passive/impersonal sense: ‘by the wise (it is stated)’

Speakers

• Not specified in input; commonly framed as Pulastya instructing Nārada in the Vāmana Purāṇa

Primary Deities

• Īśa (Īśvara/Śiva)

Key Themes

• Vrata/Rituals
• Bhakti (nāma-japa)
• Shaivism
• Merit and protection (kālaghna)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

What is the philosophical or ethical takeaway?

Devotion is expressed through both external offerings (incense, food) and internal practice (name-recitation). The verse elevates nāma-japa as spiritually potent—capable of overcoming fear of death and the anxieties bound to ‘kāla’ (time).

How does this fit the Pancalakshana?

This material aligns with ancillary Purāṇic instruction (ācāra/dharma, vrata-vidhi) rather than the five classical markers like sarga/pratisarga. In database terms it is best indexed under ‘dharma/ritual prescriptions’ embedded within the narrative frame.

What is the symbolic significance?

‘Kālaghna’ implies that devotion transcends temporality: offerings symbolize surrender of sensory enjoyments, while nāma-japa symbolizes continuous remembrance, portrayed as the true antidote to mortality.