Vamana Purana — Andhaka's Defeat & Redemption, Shloka 61

Andhaka’s Defeat, the Bhairava Manifestation, and His Redemption as Bhṛṅgī Gaṇapati

Devanagari script

त्वं कर्त्ता चैव धाता च त्वं जयस्त्वं महाजयः त्वं मङ्गल्यस्त्वमोङ्कारस्त्वमीशानो ध्रुवो ऽव्ययः

Transliteration

tvaṃ karttā caiva dhātā ca tvaṃ jayastvaṃ mahājayaḥ tvaṃ maṅgalyastvamoṅkārastvamīśāno dhruvo 'vyayaḥ

Translation

“You alone are the doer and the sustainer; you are Victory, and the Great Victory. You are auspiciousness; you are the syllable Oṃ; you are Īśāna—steadfast and imperishable.”

Speakers

• A devotee/supplicant praising Śiva (Īśāna).

Primary Deities

• Śiva (Īśāna)

Key Themes

• Supremacy and sovereignty of Śiva
• Cosmic functions (creator/sustainer)
• Auspiciousness and victory
• Oṅkāra theology (sound-symbol of the Absolute)
• Stability/imperishability of the divine

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

Why are ‘kartā’ (doer/creator) and ‘dhātā’ (sustainer) attributed to Śiva here?

Purāṇic stotras frequently ascribe comprehensive cosmic roles to the praised deity, even if other passages distribute functions among the Trimūrti. This is a devotional strategy: the deity addressed is treated as the supreme Īśvara encompassing all functions.

What does it mean to say ‘You are Oṅkāra’?

Oṅkāra (Oṃ) is the primordial sacred sound and a condensed symbol of ultimate reality. Identifying the deity with Oṃ asserts that the lord is both the transcendent absolute and the immanent principle accessible through mantra and worship.

How does ‘dhruva’ and ‘avyaya’ relate to the prayer’s earlier confession of sin?

After confession and plea for mercy, the stotra grounds hope in the deity’s unchanging nature: because the lord is steadfast and imperishable, his capacity to purify and protect is reliable, not contingent or unstable.