Vamana Purana — Portents at Bali's Sacrifice, Shloka 86

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

Devanagari script

विमतिर्नामतः ख्याता गन्तुमैच्छद् गृहं पितुः तामुवाच पतिर्गच्छ आरुह्यं श्वेतगर्दभम्

Transliteration

vimatirnāmataḥ khyātā gantumaicchad gṛhaṃ pituḥ tāmuvāca patirgaccha āruhyaṃ śvetagardabham

Translation

वह ‘विमति’ नाम से प्रसिद्ध थी। वह पिता के घर जाना चाहती थी। उसके पति ने कहा—“श्वेत गधे पर चढ़कर जाओ।”

Speakers

• Husband speaking to Vimati (within the ongoing narrative).

Key Themes

• Household conduct and permission
• Symbolic/ominous conveyance motifs in Purāṇic tales
• Didactic characterization through names

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

Is ‘Vimati’ merely a name, or does it carry moral meaning?

It is a proper name in the narrative, but it also literally means “confusion/poor judgment.” Purāṇic storytelling frequently uses such meaningful names to foreshadow a character’s choices or the ethical lesson of the episode.

Why specify a ‘white donkey’?

Animals and colors often function as narrative signals. A donkey can connote humility, burden-bearing, or social marginality; the unusual specification “white” can mark the conveyance as distinctive/ritually notable, or as an omen-like detail that later events interpret.

Does this verse connect directly to a tīrtha?

Not by name in the excerpt. In Sarovara/tīrtha-mahātmya chapters, such domestic episodes typically serve as exempla whose resolution is tied to bathing, vows, or merit at the chapter’s focal sacred site.