Vamana Purana — Sarasvata Hymn to Vishnu, Shloka 66

The Sarasvata Hymn to Vishnu (Vishnu-Pañjara) and the Redemption of a Rakshasa

Devanagari script

ॐ हरिं कुष्णं हृषीकेशं वासुदेवं जनार्दनम् प्रणतो ऽस्मि जगन्नाथं स मे पापं व्यपोहतु

Transliteration

oṃ hariṃ kuṣṇaṃ hṛṣīkeśaṃ vāsudevaṃ janārdanam praṇato 'smi jagannāthaṃ sa me pāpaṃ vyapohatu

Translation

ॐ। मी हरि—कृष्ण, हृषीकेश, वासुदेव, जनार्दन—जगन्नाथाला प्रणाम करतो. तो माझे पाप दूर करो.

Speakers

• Narrative voice within the tīrtha-māhātmya context (stuti recited as a prayer-formula); framed within the Adhyāya’s discourse.

Primary Deities

• Vishnu

Key Themes

• Nāma-stuti (praise through divine names)
• Pāpa-kṣaya (removal of sin)
• Bhakti (devotional surrender)
• Tīrtha-prayoga (recitation as a ritual adjunct)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

Why are multiple names of Viṣṇu stacked in a single verse?

This is a standard Purāṇic stuti technique: a garland of nāmas (divine epithets) invokes the deity’s many functions—cosmic lordship (Jagannātha), inner ruler (Vāsudeva), mastery of senses (Hṛṣīkeśa), and salvific power (Hari). The cumulative effect is both theological (completeness) and ritual (efficacy of nāma-recitation).

What does “sa me pāpaṃ vyapohatu” imply in Purāṇic ritual language?

It is a direct pāpa-kṣaya petition: the devotee seeks removal of accumulated demerit through surrender (praṇāma) and remembrance (nāma). In tīrtha-māhātmyas, such lines often accompany bathing, offering, or circumambulation, framing the act as spiritually purifying.

Does this verse itself identify a specific tīrtha?

No. The verse is geographically non-specific; its placement in Adhyāya 59 suggests it is meant to be recited within the chapter’s broader sacred-geography narrative, but the śloka itself names only the deity, not the site.