Vamana Purana — Structure of Jambudvipa, Shloka 15

The Structure of Jambudvipa: Nine Varshas, Navadvipa Bharata, Mountains, Rivers, and Peoples

Devanagari script

तथान्ये शतसाहस्रा भूधरा मध्यवासिनाः विस्तारोच्छ्रायिणो रम्या विपुलाः शुभसानवः

Transliteration

tathānye śatasāhasrā bhūdharā madhyavāsināḥ vistārocchrāyiṇo ramyā vipulāḥ śubhasānavaḥ

Translation

Mahendra, Malaya, Sahya, Śuktimān, le mont Ṛkṣa, Vindhya et Pāriyātra : ces sept-là sont les Kulaparvata, les montagnes principales.

Word by Word

• tathā: likewise
• tathā: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tathā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; क्रियाविशेषण (adverb) = likewise/thus

• anye: other
• anye: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: anya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, बहुवचनम्; विशेषण (others)

• śata-sāhasrāḥ: numbering a hundred thousand
• śata-sāhasrāḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śata (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक) + sāhasra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, बहुवचनम्; द्विगु-समासः (numerical compound): 'शतसहस्रसंख्यकाः' (hundred-thousands in number)

• bhūdharāḥ: mountains
• bhūdharāḥ: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhūdhara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, बहुवचनम्

• madhya-vāsināḥ: dwelling in the middle (region)
• madhya-vāsināḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: madhya (प्रातिपदिक) + vāsin (कृदन्त/प्रातिपदिक; √vas/वस् (धातु) इन्)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, बहुवचनम्; सप्तमी/षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष-भावः: 'मध्ये वासिनः' (dwelling in the middle region)

• vistāra-ucchrāyiṇaḥ: wide and lofty
• vistāra-ucchrāyiṇaḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vistāra (प्रातिपदिक) + ucchrāyin (प्रातिपदिक; √śri/श्रि or √śray/श्रय with ut-; adjectival stem)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, बहुवचनम्; इतरेतर-द्वन्द्वः: 'विस्तारिणश्च उच्छ्रायिणश्च' (broad and lofty)

• ramyāḥ: beautiful
• ramyāḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ramya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, बहुवचनम्

• vipulāḥ: vast
• vipulāḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vipula (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, बहुवचनम्

• śubha-sānavaḥ: with auspicious slopes/summits
• śubha-sānavaḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śubha (प्रातिपदिक) + sānu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, बहुवचनम्; कर्मधारयः: 'शुभानि सानूनि येषाम्' (having auspicious slopes/summits)

Speakers

• Not explicit in provided excerpt (likely within Pulastya → Nārada instructional narration)

Key Themes

• Sacred geography
• Bhūgolavidyā (purāṇic geography)
• Catalogues/lists

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

What is the philosophical or ethical takeaway?

Geographic catalogues in Purāṇas sacralize the landscape, encouraging a dharmic imagination where the earth is structured, knowable, and worthy of reverence.

How does this fit the Pancalakshana?

This belongs to sarga/pratisarga-adjacent cosmographical description (bhūvanakośa style), a common purāṇic component supporting pilgrimage and world-order narratives.

What is the symbolic significance?

The ‘seven’ principal ranges function as stabilizing pillars of Bhārata-varṣa in purāṇic thought, mirroring the idea of cosmic order upheld by foundational supports.