Vamana Purana — Saptasarasvata Tirtha, Shloka 5
Harihara Revelation and the Tirtha-Glorification of Saptasarasvata in Kurukshetra
प्रोवाच किं न पश्यध्वं महेशं पुरतः स्थितम् तमूचुर्नैव देवेशं पश्यामो गिरिजापतिम्
provāca kiṃ na paśyadhvaṃ maheśaṃ purataḥ sthitam tamūcurnaiva deveśaṃ paśyāmo girijāpatim
तो म्हणाला, “समोर उभ्या असलेल्या महेशाला तुम्ही का पाहत नाही?” ते म्हणाले, “हे देवेश, आम्हाला गिरिजापती प्रभू अजिबात दिसत नाही।”
{ "primaryRasa": "adbhuta", "secondaryRasa": "bhayanaka", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }
FAQs
The verse frames a classic Purāṇic motif: divine presence is not merely physical proximity but depends on adhikāra (fitness) and anugraha (grace). The devas’ inability signals an obscuration (tirodhāna) caused by their own fault, which the next verses make explicit.
Grammatically it is a vocative used by the devas in reply (“O deveśa”). In this narrative setting, it typically addresses the authoritative speaker questioning them (often a leading deity such as Viṣṇu/Indra or a cosmic form). The verse itself does not name the addressee, but it clearly distinguishes ‘deveśa’ (the one addressed) from ‘Girijā-pati’ (Śiva), whom they cannot see.
The paired epithets present Śiva as both supreme (Maheśa) and relationally manifest (as Pārvatī’s consort). The Purāṇic style often uses such dual naming to indicate that transcendence and immanence coexist in the deity’s identity.