Vamana Purana — Shukra's Curse on King Danda, Shloka 136

Shukra’s Curse on King Danda and Andhaka’s Challenge to Shiva

Devanagari script

तत्रामन्त्र्य महावीर्यं कपिः कन्दरमालिनम् पातालादभिनिष्क्रम्य महीं पर्यचरज्जवी

Transliteration

tatrāmantrya mahāvīryaṃ kapiḥ kandaramālinam pātālādabhiniṣkramya mahīṃ paryacarajjavī

Translation

ਉੱਥੇ ਮਹਾਵੀਰ ਕੰਦਰਮਾਲਿਨ ਨੂੰ ਵਿਦਾ ਕਰਕੇ ਉਹ ਕਪੀ ਪਾਤਾਲ ਤੋਂ ਨਿਕਲ ਆਇਆ ਅਤੇ ਤੇਜ਼ੀ ਨਾਲ ਧਰਤੀ ਉੱਤੇ ਵਿਚਰਣ ਲੱਗਾ।

Speakers

• Narrator voice within the Purāṇic dialogue context (chapter narrative) describing the kapi’s movement; explicit interlocutors not stated in the verse.

Key Themes

• Transition from netherworld to terrestrial sacred landscape
• Pilgrimage-like traversal (tīrtha-saṅgati) embedded in mythic narrative
• Mythic geography (vertical cosmology: Pātāla–Bhūmi)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

Who is the “kapi” here, and why is a monkey figure moving through Purāṇic geography?

The verse presents a vānaric agent (kapi) as a narrative mover—common in Purāṇic storytelling—whose travel functions to connect realms (Pātāla to Bhūmi) and to introduce a chain of tīrthas. Even when not identified with Hanumān, “kapi” can serve as a swift messenger/traveler enabling the text’s geographic cataloguing.

What does “Pātāla” contribute to the meaning beyond ‘underworld’?

Pātāla signals vertical cosmology: sacred geography is not only horizontal (rivers, cities) but also layered (nether regions, earth, heavens). The ascent from Pātāla frames the subsequent earthly tīrtha encounters as part of a cosmic itinerary.

Is “Kandaramālin” a place or a person?

Grammatically it is a proper name in the accusative, treated as a person/being of great valor. The epithet suggests association with caves or mountainous clefts, which often marks beings tied to liminal terrains (caverns, subterranean passages) that connect to Pātāla motifs.