Vamana Purana — Bali's Sudarshana Worship, Shloka 56

Bali’s Worship of Sudarshana and Prahlada’s Teaching on Vishnu-Bhakti

Devanagari script

किं जप्यैस्तस्य मन्त्रैर्वा किं तपोभिः किमाश्रमैः यस्य नास्ति परा भक्तिः सततं मधुसूदने

Transliteration

kiṃ japyaistasya mantrairvā kiṃ tapobhiḥ kimāśramaiḥ yasya nāsti parā bhaktiḥ satataṃ madhusūdane

Translation

Of what use to him are recitations, or mantras, or austerities, or even the disciplines of the āśramas, if he does not possess supreme devotion, constant toward Madhusūdana?

Speakers

• Unspecified in provided excerpt (Adhyaya 67 speaker-context not included in input).

Primary Deities

• Vishnu (Madhusūdana)

Key Themes

• Primacy of parā-bhakti over ritual technique
• Critique of formalism (japa/mantra/tapas/āśrama without devotion)
• Continuous remembrance (satatam) of Vishnu
• Integration of life-stages with devotion

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

Is the verse saying mantras and japa are useless?

It targets devotionless practice. Mantra, japa, and tapas are affirmed elsewhere as powerful, but here they are declared spiritually barren if they do not culminate in constant supreme devotion to Vishnu.

Why mention “āśramas” in a verse about devotion?

It universalizes the teaching: regardless of one’s life-stage—student, householder, forest-dweller, renunciant—external discipline alone is not the final criterion; parā-bhakti is.

What does the epithet “Madhusūdana” add to the meaning?

It frames devotion as directed to the victorious, protective Lord who destroys demonic obstruction (Madhu). The devotee’s constancy is toward a personal deity with salvific power, not merely toward practice itself.