Vamana Purana — Daksha's Sacrifice & Kapalin Rudra, Shloka 49

Daksha’s Sacrifice and the Origin of Kapalin Rudra (Pulastya–Narada Dialogue)

Devanagari script

श्यामावदातः शरचापपाणिर् गर्जन्यथा प्रावृषि तोयदो ऽसौ इत्थं ब्रुवन् कस्य विशातयामि स्कन्धाच्छिरस् तालफलं यथैव

Transliteration

śyāmāvadātaḥ śaracāpapāṇir garjanyathā prāvṛṣi toyado 'sau itthaṃ bruvan kasya viśātayāmi skandhācchiras tālaphalaṃ yathaiva

Translation

黒くも輝く肌を帯び、弓と矢を手にして、雨季の雨雲のごとく轟き吠えた。そう言い放って彼は豪語した。「誰の首を肩から断ち落とそうか――タール（パルミラ）の実を柄から打ち落とすように。」

Word by Word

• śyāma-avadātaḥ: dark-and-fair (of mixed hue)
• śyāma-avadātaḥ: Karta (कर्ता) — subject-qualifier
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śyāma + avadāta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga (Masculine), Prathamā vibhakti (Nominative, 1st), Ekavacana (Singular); कर्मधारय-समासः (descriptive)

• śara-cāpa-pāṇiḥ: one with bow-and-arrow in hand
• śara-cāpa-pāṇiḥ: Karta (कर्ता) — apposition to subject
• Type: Noun
• Root: śara + cāpa + pāṇi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष/उपपद-समासः (one whose hand has a bow and arrows)

• garjan: roaring
• garjan: Karta (कर्ता) — participial qualifier
• Type: Verb
• Root: garj (धातु)
• Form: Vartamāna-kṛdanta (present participle), Parasmaipada; Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana

• yathā: as/like
• yathā: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध) — comparison marker
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yathā (अव्यय)
• Form: Upamā-avyaya (comparative particle)

• prāvṛṣi: in the rainy season
• prāvṛṣi: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण) — locus/time
• Type: Noun
• Root: prāvṛṣ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga (Feminine), Saptamī vibhakti (Locative, 7th), Ekavacana

• toya-daḥ: cloud (water-giver)
• toya-daḥ: Karta (कर्ता) — comparator subject
• Type: Noun
• Root: toya + da (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; उपपद-तत्पुरुषः (water-giver)

• asau: that one/he
• asau: Karta (कर्ता) — subject
• Type: Noun
• Root: asau (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Sarvanāma (pronoun), Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana

• ittham: thus/in this manner
• ittham: Kriyā-viśeṣaṇa (क्रिया-विशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ittham (अव्यय)
• Form: Rīti-avyaya (manner adverb)

• bruvan: speaking
• bruvan: Karta (कर्ता) — participial qualifier
• Type: Verb
• Root: brū (धातु)
• Form: Vartamāna-kṛdanta (present participle), Parasmaipada; Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana

• kasya: of whom/whose
• kasya: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध) — genitive of reference
• Type: Noun
• Root: kim (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Sarvanāma, Puṃliṅga/napuṃsaka, Ṣaṣṭhī vibhakti (Genitive, 6th), Ekavacana

• viśātayāmi: shall I cut off / sever
• viśātayāmi: Kriyā (क्रिया) — main verb
• Type: Verb
• Root: vi-śāt (धातु)
• Form: Laṭ (Present), Uttama-puruṣa (1st person), Ekavacana; Parasmaipada

• skandhāt: from the shoulder
• skandhāt: Apādāna (अपादान) — from (source)
• Type: Noun
• Root: skandha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Pañcamī vibhakti (Ablative, 5th), Ekavacana

• śiraḥ: head
• śiraḥ: Karma (कर्म) — object
• Type: Noun
• Root: śiras (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napuṃsakaliṅga (Neuter), Dvitīyā vibhakti (Accusative, 2nd), Ekavacana

• tāla-phalam: a palm fruit
• tāla-phalam: Upamāna (उपमान) — standard of comparison
• Type: Noun
• Root: tāla + phala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napuṃsakaliṅga, Dvitīyā, Ekavacana; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (palm-fruit)

• yathā: as/like
• yathā: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध) — comparison marker
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yathā (अव्यय)
• Form: Upamā-avyaya (comparative particle)

• eva: indeed/just
• eva: Nipāta (निपात) — emphasis
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: Avadhāraṇa-avyaya (emphatic particle)

Speakers

• A boastful warrior figure (contextually an adversary) speaking; narrative frame not specified in input (often Pulastya–Nārada in the Vāmana Purāṇa)

Primary Deities

• Shiva (implicit by next verse’s Śaṅkara)
• Vishnu/Nārāyaṇa (implicit by Nara being Nārāyaṇa-bāhu-jāta in next verse)

Key Themes

• Daitya–Deva Conflict
• Heroic boast (vīra-vāda)
• Dharma protecting intervention (setup)
• Shaiva–Vaishnava proximity (setup for Śaṅkara’s counsel)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

What is the philosophical or ethical takeaway?

The verse depicts unchecked pride (mada) expressed as violent bravado. Purāṇic narratives typically use such boasting to foreshadow the restraining of adharma by a higher, divinely aligned force.

How does this fit the Pancalakshana?

Vamśānucarita / carita-like narrative movement: a martial episode within the broader dynastic and divine-history storytelling, rather than cosmogenesis (sarga) or dissolution (pralaya).

What is the symbolic significance?

The rain-cloud roar underscores overwhelming, intimidating power, while the ‘palmyra fruit’ simile conveys casual, effortless violence—an emblem of adharma’s arrogance before it is checked by dharmic authority.