Vamana Purana — Battle at Mandara, Shloka 42

The Battle at Mandara: Vinayaka, Nandin, and Skanda Rout the Daitya Hosts

Devanagari script

इत्येवमुक्तो वृषभध्वजेन वज्रं समादाय शिलादसूनुः बलिं सम्भ्येत्य जघान मूर्ध्नि संमोहितः सो ऽवनिमाससाद

Transliteration

ityevamukto vṛṣabhadhvajena vajraṃ samādāya śilādasūnuḥ baliṃ sambhyetya jaghāna mūrdhni saṃmohitaḥ so 'vanimāsasāda

Translation

Demikian diperintah oleh Tuhan berpanji Lembu (Śiva), putra Śilāda mengangkat senjata laksana vajra; mendekati Bali ia menghantam kepalanya. Bali pun terbingung dan jatuh ke tanah.

Speakers

• Narrator describing the action; prior direct speech is Śiva’s command to Śailādi; here the agent is Śilāda’s son (Nandin).

Primary Deities

• Śiva
• Nandin (Nandikeśvara)

Key Themes

• Śaiva martial theology (Śiva’s will enacted through gaṇas)
• Defeat/humiliation of an asura king
• Nandin’s prominence among Śiva’s attendants
• Battle as restoration of cosmic order

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

Is “Śilāda’s son” definitely Nandin?

Yes in standard Purāṇic identification: Śilāda is the sage associated with the birth/attainment of Nandin (Nandikeśvara), who becomes Śiva’s foremost attendant and gatekeeper. The epithet śilādasūnu is a conventional pointer to Nandin.

Why is the weapon called “vajra” if Indra is not involved?

Vajra can denote Indra’s specific thunderbolt, but it also functions as a generic term for a crushing, adamantine weapon ‘like a thunderbolt.’ Here it signals irresistible force rather than Indra’s personal presence.

Which Bali is meant here—Vāmana’s Bali or another figure?

Given the Andhaka-vadha battle setting and the immediate gaṇa–daitya combat, this Bali is best read as a daitya combatant/leader named Bali within this episode, not necessarily the famed Mahābali of the Vāmana–Trivikrama narrative. Purāṇas frequently reuse prominent asura names across cycles.