Shloka 10

Vamana's Three Steps — Vamana’s Three Steps and the Binding of Bali

Devanagari script

न केवलं प्रमाणेन वामनो ऽयं लघुः प्रिये येन क्रमत्रयं मौर्ख्याद् याचते बुद्धितो ऽपि च

Transliteration

na kevalaṃ pramāṇena vāmano 'yaṃ laghuḥ priye yena kramatrayaṃ maurkhyād yācate buddhito 'pi ca

Translation

പ്രിയേ, ഈ വാമനൻ ശരീരപ്രമാണത്തിൽ മാത്രം ‘ചെറുത്’ അല്ല; കാരണം അവൻ മൂന്നു ചുവടു ഭൂമി ചോദിക്കുന്നു—മൂഢതയാലോ അല്ലെങ്കിൽ ബുദ്ധിപൂർവം അറിഞ്ഞുകൊണ്ടോ.

Speakers

• (Contextual) Śukra (preceptor of the Asuras) addressing Bali (or the royal assembly)
• warning about Vāmana; vocative ‘priye’ indicates intimate counsel.

Primary Deities

• Vishnu

Key Themes

• Vāmana’s apparent smallness vs cosmic power
• Discernment vs deception
• Dharma of giving and its consequences
• Foreshadowing of Trivikrama

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

Why does the verse say Vāmana is not ‘small’ merely by measure?

It contrasts physical stature (pramāṇa) with true potency. Vāmana’s ‘smallness’ is a deliberate guise; the request for three strides signals the imminent revelation of Trivikrama’s cosmic expansion.

What is implied by ‘from folly or from intellect’ (maurkhyāt…buddhitaḥ)?

It frames the request as too consequential to be naïve: either Vāmana is deceptively strategic (buddhitaḥ) or, if taken as naïve (maurkhyāt), the result is still dangerous—hence the warning to scrutinize the boon.

How does ‘three strides’ function in the narrative logic?

It is the narrative hinge: a seemingly trivial gift becomes total cosmic claim—earth, mid-space, and heaven—preparing the theological point that divine sovereignty can be asserted through minimal-seeming requests.