Agni Purana — Avatara-lila, Shloka 11
Chapter 12 — श्रीहरिवंशवर्णनं (Śrī-Harivaṃśa-varṇana) | The Description of the Sacred Harivaṃśa
किं मया क्षिप्तया कंस जातो यस्त्वां बधिष्यति विष्णुनाभ्यब्जादज इति ख, चिह्नितपुस्तकपाठः सर्वस्वभूतो देवानां भूभारहरणाय सः
kiṃ mayā kṣiptayā kaṃsa jāto yastvāṃ badhiṣyati viṣṇunābhyabjādaja iti kha, cihnitapustakapāṭhaḥ sarvasvabhūto devānāṃ bhūbhāraharaṇāya saḥ
હે કંસ! મને ફેંકી દેવામાં શું સિદ્ધ થયું? મારામાંથી જ તે જન્મ્યો છે જે તારો વધ કરશે. (પાઠાંતર: ‘વિષ્ણુની નાભિ-કમળમાંથી જન્મેલો અજ’). દેવતાઓનું સર્વસ્વરૂપ તે ભૂભાર હરણ કરવા આવ્યો છે.
Pauranic narrator (Agni Purana’s narrative voice, traditionally Agni speaking to Vasiṣṭha)
Vidya Category: {"primary_vidya":"Avatara-Katha","secondary_vidya":"Cosmology","practical_application":"Used to teach the avatara’s purpose (bhubhara-harana) and to frame Krishna as divinely ordained slayer of adharma; supports katha, pravachana, and vrata recitations.","sutra_style":false}
Encyclopedic Reference: {"reference_type":"Commentary","entry_title":"Prophecy of Kamsa’s slayer; bhubhara-harana purpose","lookup_keywords":["Kamsa slayer prophecy","bhubhara-harana","Vishnu essence of gods","aja lotus navel variant","avatar purpose"],"quick_summary":"The sky-speech declares Kamsa’s act futile and identifies the coming slayer as divinely sourced—‘essence of the gods’—incarnated to remove Earth’s burden."}
Alamkara Type: Arthantaranyasa (reasoning/justification) and Virodha-abhāsa (apparent contradiction: killing infant yet destiny stands)
Concept: Ishvara’s avatara is teleological—restoring cosmic balance (dharma) and relieving bhubhara; the divine is sarvasva-bhuta to devas (their essence/support).
Application: Read historical/personal crises through dharma-restoration lens; align actions with loka-sangraha rather than fear-driven violence.
Khanda Section: Avataras / Krishna-janma-katha (Puranic narrative: prophecy of Kamsa’s slayer)
Primary Rasa: adbhuta
Secondary Rasa: vira
Type: Kingdom
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A luminous sky-maiden addresses Kamsa; behind her, a symbolic vignette of Vishnu with navel-lotus and lotus-born Brahma (aja) indicating the variant reading; Kamsa shown startled.","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural, sky-maiden speaking with raised hand, Kamsa below in fear, inset cosmic Vishnu with nabhi-lotus and Brahma seated on lotus, bold outlines and traditional ornament","tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore, central sky-maiden with gold halo, Kamsa below, side panel showing Vishnu reclining with lotus from navel and Brahma on lotus, heavy gold embossing and jewel tones","mysore_prompt":"Mysore style, refined faces, narrative split-scene: prophecy above, cosmology inset, palace interior below, soft colors and precise detailing","mughal_miniature_prompt":"Mughal miniature, speech scroll from sky-maiden, Kamsa with courtiers, small cosmological cartouche of Vishnu-navel-lotus-Brahma, intricate textiles and architecture"}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"epic","suggested_raga":"Kedar","pace":"medium","voice_tone":"epic"}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: yastvām = yaḥ + tvām; viṣṇunābhyabjādajaḥ split as viṣṇu-nābhi-abjāt + ajaḥ; editorial elements 'kha' and 'cihnitapustakapāṭhaḥ' treated as textual-note padas.
Related Themes: Agni Purana avatara-lakshana and Vishnu cosmology passages (nabhi-padma/Brahma origin motifs); Agni Purana dharma-restoration themes across avatara narratives
FAQs
No ritual/medical/weapon-science vidyā is taught here; the verse conveys a theological motif—divine incarnation and destiny—framed as a prophecy about Kaṁsa’s slayer and the mission of removing the earth’s burden (bhūbhāra-haraṇa).
It preserves a narrative-theological strand (avatāra-kathā) alongside a philological note (a marked manuscript variant mentioning “aja” and the lotus-from-Viṣṇu’s-navel birth), illustrating how the Agni Purana integrates mythology with textual transmission awareness.
It emphasizes that cosmic disorder (earth’s burden) is relieved through divinely ordained action; recognizing such dharmic purpose supports faith in providence and the moral arc of adharma being ultimately removed.