Vamana Purana — Prahlada's Pilgrimage, Shloka 13

Prahlada’s Pilgrimage and the Origin of the Sudarshana–Trishula Exchange (Jalodbhava Episode)

Devanagari script

आषाढाभ्यां तथा द्वाभ्यां द्वावूरू पूजयेद् बुधः सलिलं शिशिरं तत्र दोहदे च प्रकीर्तितम्

Transliteration

āṣāḍhābhyāṃ tathā dvābhyāṃ dvāvūrū pūjayed budhaḥ salilaṃ śiśiraṃ tatra dohade ca prakīrtitam

Translation

Likewise, under the two Āṣāḍhā (nakṣatras), the wise person should worship the two thighs. There, at the dohada, cool water is prescribed (as the offering).

Speakers

• Not specified in the excerpt (likely a narrator/ṛṣi instructing a listener within the Saro-māhātmya frame).

Primary Deities

• Vishnu

Key Themes

• Nakshatra-based ritual timing
• Aṅga-pūjā (limb worship)
• Ritual offerings (water)
• Vrata discipline
• Tirtha-related merit

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

Why are the ‘two Āṣāḍhās’ mentioned together?

The lunar mansion system includes paired nakṣatras with shared naming (Pūrvāṣāḍhā and Uttarāṣāḍhā). The rite treats them as a unit for a single aṅga-pūjā instruction, here linked to worship of the thighs.

What is the significance of offering ‘cool water’ (śiśira-salila)?

Water is a primary purifier and a common tīrtha-offering. Specifying ‘cool’ water suggests a regulated, sattvic offering aligned with the seasonal/ritual moment called dohada, and it may also reflect a cooling, pacifying (śānti) intent within the vrata.

Does this verse indicate a specific sacred water-body?

Not directly. It prescribes ‘salila’ as an offering, but no named river or lake appears in the line. Any identification of a particular water-body would have to come from surrounding verses of Adhyāya 54.