Vamana Purana — Andhaka's Defeat & Redemption, Shloka 37
Andhaka’s Defeat, the Bhairava Manifestation, and His Redemption as Bhṛṅgī Gaṇapati
भूमिस्थाद् रुधिराज्जातो भैरवः शूलभूषितः ख्यातो ललितराजेति सौभाञ्जनसमप्रभः
bhūmisthād rudhirājjāto bhairavaḥ śūlabhūṣitaḥ khyāto lalitarājeti saubhāñjanasamaprabhaḥ
[{"question": "Why does a Marut-origin narrative begin with royal/progenitor genealogy (Priyavrata, Savana)?", "answer": "Purāṇas frequently anchor divine-host origins in the broader vaṃśa (lineage) framework. By situating events within Manu’s descendants, the text integrates cosmology, kingship, and the emergence of deity-groups into a single historical-cosmic continuum."}, {"question": "What does ‘trailokya-pūjita’ imply about Savana?", "answer": "It signals exceptional renown and ritual/political legitimacy across the cosmic tiers. Such epithets often foreshadow that the figure plays a pivotal role in subsequent events (e.g., producing notable descendants, instituting rites, or becoming linked to divine hosts)."}, {"question": "Is any sacred geography implied here even though none is named?", "answer": "Only indirectly: Priyavrata is elsewhere associated with ordering the earth and its divisions in Purāṇic literature, but this verse itself does not specify any named region. Any geographic mapping must be drawn from later verses or parallel passages, not from this line alone."}]
{ "primaryRasa": "adbhuta", "secondaryRasa": "raudra", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }
FAQs
It differentiates streams/sources of emanation: not only from the wound itself but also from blood that touches the earth, multiplying Bhairava-forms and emphasizing the pervasive spread of Śiva’s śakti in the battlefield setting.
Saubhāñjana is a dark, glossy substance used to line the eyes; the simile can suggest a deep, intense, lustrous hue—often associated with fierce, awe-inspiring forms—rather than a bright, golden radiance.
Not necessarily. Lalita here functions primarily as a proper name within a catalog of Bhairava-forms; Purāṇic lists often juxtapose ‘graceful’ epithets with fierce iconography to convey the deity’s totality beyond a single mood.