Vamana Purana — Portents at Bali's Sacrifice, Shloka 82

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

Devanagari script

ते मद्वचनमाकर्ण्य मत्वैव रजनीचरम् दृढं वृक्षे समुद्ब्ध्य घातयन्त तपोधन

Transliteration

te madvacanamākarṇya matvaiva rajanīcaram dṛḍhaṃ vṛkṣe samudbdhya ghātayanta tapodhana

Translation

ಓ ತಪೋಧನ, ನನ್ನ ಮಾತುಗಳನ್ನು ಕೇಳಿ ಅವರು ನನ್ನನ್ನು ರಜನೀಚರನೆಂದು ಭಾವಿಸಿ; ಗಟ್ಟಿಯಾಗಿ ಮರಕ್ಕೆ ಕಟ್ಟಿಸಿ ನನ್ನನ್ನು ಹೊಡೆದು ಕೆಡವಿದರು.

Speakers

• Narrator/first-person speaker (the reborn being) recounting events to the listening interlocutor(s) in the chapter’s dialogue frame (not provided in prompt).

Key Themes

• Karmic consequence
• Mistaken identity and violence
• Ascetic authority (tapo-dhana)
• Moral causality in puranic narrative

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

Why are the ascetics described as ‘tapo-dhana’ while committing violence?

The epithet marks their ascetic status, not infallibility. Puranic exempla often show that even religious agents can act harshly under fear or misrecognition; the narrative then pivots to karmic explanation and later release.

What does ‘rajanīcara’ imply here?

Literally ‘one who moves at night’; in puranic idiom it commonly denotes a rākṣasa or malevolent being. The verse indicates the ascetics’ assumption (matvā) rather than a confirmed identity.

Is the tree-binding motif significant?

Yes. Binding to a tree is a stock punitive image in dharma-narratives, emphasizing restraint and public chastisement; it also sets up the later karmic account of why the victim suffers and how release occurs.