Vamana Purana — Portents at Bali's Sacrifice, Shloka 7

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

Devanagari script

पुल्स्त्य उवाच शुक्रस्तद् वाक्यमाकर्ण्य विरोचनसुतेरितम् अथ ज्ञात्वा कारणं च बलिं वचनमब्रवीत्

Transliteration

pulstya uvāca śukrastad vākyamākarṇya virocanasuteritam atha jñātvā kāraṇaṃ ca baliṃ vacanamabravīt

Translation

પુલસ્ત્ય બોલ્યા—વિરોચનપુત્ર બલિએ કહેલું તે વચન સાંભળી, શુક્રે કારણ જાણી લીધું અને પછી બલિને આ વચન કહ્યાં.

Speakers

• Pulastya narrating (to Nārada
• per common Vāmana Purāṇa framing) about Śukra speaking to Bali

Primary Deities

• Vishnu (Vāsudeva/Vāmana)

Key Themes

• Guru’s counsel
• Asura polity and dharma
• Foreshadowing of divine intervention
• Narrative transition

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

Why is Bali identified as ‘Virocana’s son’ here?

The patronymic situates Bali within the Daitya royal lineage (Prahlāda → Virocana → Bali), emphasizing inherited sovereignty and the prestige that makes his impending ‘gift’ (dāna) cosmically consequential.

What does ‘having understood the cause (kāraṇa)’ imply about Śukra’s insight?

It signals Śukra’s recognition that Bali’s situation is not merely political but divinely engineered—preparing the reader for Śukra’s warning that Viṣṇu is drawing near under a strategic guise.

Does this verse contain tirtha/geographical data typical of the Vāmana Purāṇa?

No. It functions as narrative scaffolding; the geography-heavy portions occur elsewhere (e.g., Saromāhātmya and tīrtha catalogues), whereas this chapter is primarily mythic dialogue.