Vamana Purana — Kali's Complaint to Brahma (Part 2), Shloka 16

Kali’s Complaint to Brahma and the Arrival of Śrī (Jayaśrī) in Bali’s Reign

Devanagari script

सा तद्वचनमाकर्ण्य प्राह श्रीः पद्ममालिनी बले शृणुष्व यास्मि त्वामायाता महिषि बलात्

Transliteration

sā tadvacanamākarṇya prāha śrīḥ padmamālinī bale śṛṇuṣva yāsmi tvāmāyātā mahiṣi balāt

Translation

അവന്റെ വാക്കുകൾ കേട്ട ശേഷം, പദ്മമാലിനിയായ ശ്രീ പറഞ്ഞു: “ബലി, കേൾക്കുക. ഹേ മഹിഷീ, (നിന്റെ) ബലത്താൽ നിർബന്ധിതയായി ഞാൻ നിന്റെ അടുക്കൽ വന്നിരിക്കുന്നു.”

Speakers

• Śrī (Lakṣmī) speaking to King Bali (addressing him with royal honorifics).

Primary Deities

• Śrī/Lakṣmī
• Bali

Key Themes

• Śrī as personified sovereignty
• Auspicious iconography (lotus)
• Transfer of fortune due to power/merit
• Legitimacy and the ethics of rule

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

What does ‘padmamālinī’ signal in Purāṇic symbolism?

The lotus signifies śuddhi (purity), aiśvarya (sovereign power), and auspiciousness. Calling Śrī ‘lotus-garlanded’ marks her as the very principle of royal legitimacy and prosperity.

How should ‘mahiṣi’ be understood here—Bali’s queen or Bali himself?

In Purāṇic diction, ‘mahiṣī’ can function as an honorific for a royal personage (‘sovereign lady/queen’). Given the immediate vocative ‘bale’, the line primarily addresses Bali; ‘mahiṣi’ may be a respectful epithet or a textual variant reflecting courtly address. The core meaning remains: Śrī declares her arrival to Bali.

Does ‘balāt’ pun on Bali’s name?

Grammatically it means ‘by force/power/compulsion’. In context it can also echo Bali’s very identity as ‘the powerful one’, suggesting that Śrī is drawn to the locus of effective sovereignty—whether by merit, might, or cosmic reallocation.