Vamana Purana — Vishnu Slays Kalanemi, Shloka 30

Vishnu Enters the Deva–Asura War and Slays Kalanemi

Devanagari script

ततो विशसनो रौद्रो दैत्यानां दैवतैः सह जातो रुधिरनिष्यन्दो रजःसयमनात्मकः

Transliteration

tato viśasano raudro daityānāṃ daivataiḥ saha jāto rudhiraniṣyando rajaḥsayamanātmakaḥ

Translation

പിന്നീട് ദൈത്യന്മാരും ദേവന്മാരും തമ്മിൽ ക്രൂരവും ഭയാനകവുമായ സംഹാരം ഉദിച്ചു—രക്തധാരകൾ ഒഴുകി; അത് ധൂളിയും അന്ധകാരവും പോലെയുള്ള സ്വഭാവം കൈവരിച്ചു.

Speakers

• Narratorial voice (Purāṇic narrator) describing events to the listening sage(s) (frame not explicit in the given excerpt).

Primary Deities

• Devas (collective)
• Daityas (collective)

Key Themes

• Deva–Daitya conflict
• Raudra (terrible) battle imagery
• Cosmic disorder signaled by dust and blood

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

What does the compound “rudhiraniṣyanda” convey in Purāṇic battle description?

It literally means “a flowing forth (niṣyanda) of blood (rudhira),” a conventional epic-Purāṇic marker of extreme carnage, emphasizing the battle’s intensity and scale.

Why is “dust” (rajaḥ) highlighted alongside blood?

Dust is a stock battlefield motif: chariots, troops, and weapons raise clouds that obscure vision, symbolically mirroring the moral and cosmic turbulence produced by adharma-driven conflict.

Is any tīrtha or sacred geography indicated here?

No. This śloka is purely narrative and atmospheric; it does not name a locale. Geographic anchoring, if present in the chapter, would appear in surrounding verses not included here.