Vamana Purana — Merit of the Vamana Purana, Shloka 11

The Merit of Hearing and Reciting the Vamana Purana (Phalaśruti)

Devanagari script

दुर्भिक्षसंपीडितपुत्रभार्ये यामी सदा पोषणतत्परे च देवाग्निविप्रर्षिरते च पित्रोः शुश्रुषके भ्रातरि ज्येष्ठसाम्ने यत्तत्फलं संप्रवदन्ति देवाः स तत् फलं लभते चास्य पाठात् // वम्प्_69.10 चतुर्दशं वामनमाहुरग्र्यं श्रुते च यस्याघचयाश्च नाशम् प्रयान्ति नास्त्यत्र च संशयो मे महान्ति पापान्यपि नारदाशु

Transliteration

durbhikṣasaṃpīḍitaputrabhārye yāmī sadā poṣaṇatatpare ca devāgniviprarṣirate ca pitroḥ śuśruṣake bhrātari jyeṣṭhasāmne yattatphalaṃ saṃpravadanti devāḥ sa tat phalaṃ labhate cāsya pāṭhāt // VamP_69.10 caturdaśaṃ vāmanamāhuragryaṃ śrute ca yasyāghacayāśca nāśam prayānti nāstyatra ca saṃśayo me mahānti pāpānyapi nāradāśu

Translation

दुर्भिक्ष के समय जो पुत्र और पत्नी सहित पीड़ित होकर भी सदा उनके पालन-पोषण में तत्पर रहता है; जो देवताओं, अग्नि, ब्राह्मणों और ऋषियों की सेवा में रत है; जो माता-पिता की शुश्रूषा करता है और ज्येष्ठ भ्राता की सेवा करता है—ऐसे आचरण का जो फल देवता बताते हैं, वही फल इस पाठ के जप/पाठ से उसे प्राप्त होता है। इसे ‘वामन का उत्कृष्ट चतुर्दश (अध्याय/पाठ)’ कहते हैं; इसके श्रवण से पाप-समूह नष्ट हो जाते हैं—हे नारद, मुझे इसमें संदेह नहीं; बड़े पाप भी शीघ्र नष्ट होते हैं।

Speakers

• Narrator-sage addressing Nārada (explicitly in the closing line)
• within the broader sage-to-sage transmission frame.

Primary Deities

• Vishnu
• Agni

Key Themes

• Householder dharma under hardship (famine ethics)
• Support of dependents
• Service to parents and elders
• Merit equivalence: conduct vs recitation
• Sin-destruction through śravaṇa/pāṭha
• Purāṇic ‘section praise’ (agrya-caturdaśa)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

Why does the verse highlight famine (durbhikṣa) specifically?

Famine is treated as a stress-test of dharma: when resources are scarce, sustaining dependents and continuing basic religious obligations becomes especially meritorious. The text frames endurance and responsibility (yāmī, poṣaṇa-tatpara) as exemplary righteousness.

How can mere recitation (pāṭha) yield the same fruit as difficult lifelong duties?

This is a classic Purāṇic phalaśruti strategy: it sacralizes the text itself as a conduit of merit. The claim does not negate ethical duty; rather, it asserts that the narrative/section—linked here to Vāmana—functions as a powerful purifier, especially for those unable to perform extensive rites.

What is meant by ‘caturdaśaṃ vāmanam āhur agryam’ (‘the excellent Fourteenth of Vāmana’)?

Many Purāṇas contain internal numbering of praised units (a chapter, subsection, or set of verses). Here ‘caturdaśa’ likely refers to a traditionally counted passage within a Vāmana-centered corpus or within a local recitation tradition. The key point is its status as ‘agrya’ (preeminent) and its asserted power to destroy accumulated sin upon hearing.