Vamana Purana — Kali's Complaint to Brahma (Part 2), Shloka 45

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

Devanagari script

शौण्डीर्यमानिनं वीरं ततो ऽहं स्वयमागता नाश्चर्य दानवश्रेष्ठ हिरण्यकशिपोः कुले

Transliteration

śauṇḍīryamāninaṃ vīraṃ tato 'haṃ svayamāgatā nāścarya dānavaśreṣṭha hiraṇyakaśipoḥ kule

Translation

धिटाईच्या पराक्रमाचा अभिमान बाळगणारा असा वीर तू आहेस, हे पाहून मी स्वतः येथे आले आहे। हे दानवश्रेष्ठ, यात आश्चर्य नाही; कारण तू हिरण्यकशिपूच्या कुळात जन्मला आहेस।

Speakers

• (Vāmana/Viṣṇu in disguise) speaking to Bali

Primary Deities

• Vishnu (Vāmana)

Key Themes

• Testing of dharma
• Royal pride vs. righteousness
• Lineage and inherited disposition
• Vāmana’s strategic speech (parīkṣā)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

Why does Vāmana mention Hiraṇyakaśipu’s lineage here?

The remark frames Bali’s temperament (valor mixed with pride) as a hereditary Daitya trait, while also setting up a moral test: whether Bali will transcend the ‘asuric’ pattern through truthful giving and restraint.

Is this praise or criticism?

It is deliberately double-edged. Vāmana flatters Bali as ‘best of Dānavas’ while subtly pointing to the danger of śauṇḍīrya (swaggering pride), preparing the ground for Bali’s ethical trial.

Does this verse contain any tīrtha or geographic marker typical of the Vāmana Purāṇa?

No explicit river, lake, forest, or tīrtha is named in this śloka; it functions as narrative dialogue within the Bali episode rather than a māhātmya-geography passage.