Vamana Purana — Birth of Skanda (Kartikeya), Shloka 78

The Birth and Consecration of Skanda (Kartikeya) at Kurukshetra

Devanagari script

बाहुदा शतसीर्षं च वाहा गोनन्दनन्दिकौ भीमं भीमरथी प्रादाद् वेगारिं सरयूर्ददौ

Transliteration

bāhudā śatasīrṣaṃ ca vāhā gonandanandikau bhīmaṃ bhīmarathī prādād vegāriṃ sarayūrdadau

Translation

ಬಾಹುದಾ ಶತಶೀರ್ಷನನ್ನು ಜನ್ಮನೀಡಿದಳು; ವಾಹಾ ಗೋ, ನಂದ, ನಂದಿಕರನ್ನು ಜನ್ಮನೀಡಿದಳು. ಭೀಮರಥೀ ಭೀಮನನ್ನು ಜನ್ಮನೀಡಿದಳು; ಸರಯೂ ವೇಗಾರಿಯನ್ನು ನೀಡಿದಳು.

Word by Word

• बाहुदा: (River) Bāhudā
• बाहुदा: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: बाहुदा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; नदी-नाम (proper noun)

• शतसीर्षम्: Śatasīrṣa (lit. ‘hundred-headed’, name)
• शतसीर्षम्: Karma (कर्म/Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शत-शीर्ष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; समासः षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (शतस्य शीर्षाणि यस्य)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-निपात (conjunction)

• वाहा: (River) Vāhā
• वाहा: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वाहा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; नदी-नाम (proper noun)

• गोनन्दनन्दिकौ: Gonanda and Nandika
• गोनन्दनन्दिकौ: Karma (कर्म/Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गो-नन्द-नन्दिक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), द्विवचन; समासः द्वन्द्वः (गोनन्दः + नन्दिकः)

• भीमम्: Bhīma
• भीमम्: Karma (कर्म/Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भीम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन

• भीमरथी: Bhīmarathī (one with a formidable chariot; name)
• भीमरथी: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भीमरथिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; समासः कर्मधारय/तत्पुरुष-प्रायः (भीमः रथः यस्य/भीमरथः)

• प्रादात्: gave
• प्रादात्: Kriya (क्रिया/Verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्र-दा (धातु)
• Form: लुङ् (Aorist/लुङ्), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन; ‘gave’

• वेगारिम्: Vegāri (lit. ‘enemy of speed’; name)
• वेगारिम्: Karma (कर्म/Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वेग-अरि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; समासः षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (वेगस्य अरिः)

• सरयूः: (River) Sarayū
• सरयूः: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सरयू (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; नदी-नाम (proper noun)

• ददौ: gave
• ददौ: Kriya (क्रिया/Verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: दा (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect/लिट्), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन; ‘gave’

Speakers

• Narrator (Purāṇic voice) continuing a tīrtha-linked catalogue of manifestations (speaker not explicit in the given excerpt).

Key Themes

• Tīrtha Mahimā (rivers as sources of power and beings)
• Mythic onomastics tied to geography
• Pan-regional sacral mapping through river lists

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

Does ‘Nandika’ here imply the Śaiva bull-attendant Nandin?

The name strongly echoes Śaiva Nandin/Nandikeśvara, but in this verse it appears as one item in a river-generated list. Without additional surrounding verses, it is safest to treat it as a proper name produced by the tīrtha, while noting the likely intertextual resonance.

What is the function of hyperbolic forms like ‘Śataśīrṣa’ (hundred-headed)?

Hyperbolic morphology is a Purāṇic marker of the marvelous. It elevates the tīrtha’s status by associating it with beings beyond ordinary human scale, reinforcing the idea that sacred waters generate extraordinary outcomes.

Why is Sarayū singled out with a distinct ‘gift’ (Vegāri)?

Sarayū is a major sacred river in North India with strong epic and devotional associations. Assigning it a named manifestation is a way of integrating well-known rivers into the text’s tīrtha network and giving them a specific mythic ‘signature’ within this chapter’s catalogue.