Vamana Purana — Slaying of Raktabija, Shloka 5

The Slaying of Raktabīja and Niśumbha–Śumbha; the Manifestation of the Mātṛkās and the Devas’ Hymn

Devanagari script

कण्ठादथ च कौमारी बर्हिपत्रा च शक्तिनी समुद्भूता च देवर्षे मयूरवरवाहना

Transliteration

kaṇṭhādatha ca kaumārī barhipatrā ca śaktinī samudbhūtā ca devarṣe mayūravaravāhanā

Translation

ਫਿਰ, ਹੇ ਦੇਵਰਿਸ਼ੀ, ਕੰਠ ਤੋਂ ਕੌਮਾਰੀ ਉਤਪੰਨ ਹੋਈ—ਸ਼ਕਤੀ (ਭਾਲਾ) ਧਾਰਣ ਵਾਲੀ, ਮੋਰ-ਪੰਖਾਂ ਨਾਲ ਸਜੀ, ਅਤੇ ਸ਼੍ਰੇਸ਼ਠ ਮਯੂਰ ਨੂੰ ਵਾਹਨ ਬਣਾਉਣ ਵਾਲੀ।

Speakers

• Narratorial voice addressing a devarṣi (explicitly ‘devarṣe’)
• within the Andhaka-vadha narration.

Primary Deities

• Skanda/Kumāra (Kārttikeya)
• Devī as Kaumārī

Key Themes

• Mātṛkā manifestation
• Martial śakti and divine weaponry
• Iconography (peacock, spear)
• Aid to the devas in battle

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

Why is Kaumārī linked with the peacock and spear?

These are Skanda/Kārttikeya’s characteristic emblems: the peacock as his vāhana and the śakti (spear/lance) as his signature weapon. The verse encodes her identity through iconography.

What does ‘from the throat’ signify?

It indicates an emanational theology: the goddess-form arises from a specific locus of the deity’s body, symbolizing that the Mātṛkā is the deity’s own power externalized for cosmic action.

Who is the ‘devarṣi’ being addressed?

The text directly addresses a ‘divine seer’; in Purāṇic narrative conventions this commonly points to Nārada, though the exact framing speaker-listener pair can vary by recension.