Vamana Purana — Jabali on the Banyan Tree, Shloka 51

Jabali Bound on the Banyan Tree and Nandayanti’s Appeal at Sri-Kantha on the Yamuna

Devanagari script

किं त्वया न पिरज्ञातं तस्मात् ते कथयाम्यहम् तदा तया तु तन्वङ्ग्या सुरथस्य महीपतेः

Transliteration

kiṃ tvayā na pirajñātaṃ tasmāt te kathayāmyaham tadā tayā tu tanvaṅgyā surathasya mahīpateḥ

Translation

O que é que tu não compreendeste? Por isso eu te explicarei. Naquele tempo, porém, aquela donzela de membros esguios (tanvaṅgī), a respeito do rei Suratha…

Word by Word

• किम्: what
• किम्: Karma (कर्म/Object; of ‘known’)
• Type: Noun
• Root: किम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Nominative/Accusative (1st/2nd), Singular (एकवचन); interrogative pronoun

• त्वया: by you
• त्वया: Kartr-karana (कर्ता-करण; agent in passive sense)
• Type: Noun
• Root: युष्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Pronoun, Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Singular (एकवचन)

• न: not
• न: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: Negation particle (निषेध-निपात)

• प्रि-रज्ञातम्: known/understood
• प्रि-रज्ञातम्: Karma (कर्म/Object; ‘known’)
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्र-ज्ञा (धातु)
• Form: Past Passive Participle (कर्मणि क्त), Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Nominative/Accusative (1st/2nd), Singular (एकवचन); text reading ‘pirajñātaṃ’ understood as ‘prirajñātaṃ’ ≈ ‘prajñātam’ (प्रज्ञातम्)

• तस्मात्: therefore
• तस्मात्: Hetu (हेतु/Cause)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Ablatival adverb (तस्मात्-प्रयोगः): ‘therefore’

• ते: to you
• ते: Sampradana (सम्प्रदान/Recipient)
• Type: Noun
• Root: युष्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Pronoun, Dative (4th/चतुर्थी), Singular (एकवचन)

• कथयामि: I tell
• कथयामि: Kriya (क्रिया/Main verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: कथय् (धातु)
• Form: Present (लट्), 1st person (उत्तमपुरुष), Singular (एकवचन), Parasmaipada (परस्मैपद)

• अहम्: I
• अहम्: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Pronoun, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular (एकवचन)

• तदा: then
• तदा: Kala (काल/Time)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तदा (अव्यय)
• Form: Adverb (कालवाचक-अव्यय): ‘then’

• तया: by her
• तया: Karana (करण/Instrument)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine (स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Singular (एकवचन)

• तु: indeed/but
• तु: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: Particle (निपात)

• तनु-अङ्ग्या: by the slender-limbed (woman)
• तनु-अङ्ग्या: Visheshana (विशेषण/Qualifier of तया)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तनु (प्रातिपदिक) + अङ्ग (प्रातिपदिक) + ङीप् (स्त्रीप्रत्यय)
• Form: Feminine (स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Singular (एकवचन); बहुव्रीहिः ‘she whose limbs are slender’

• सुरथस्य: of Suratha
• सुरथस्य: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Possessor)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सुरथ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Genitive (6th/षष्ठी), Singular (एकवचन)

• महीपतेः: of the king
• महीपतेः: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Possessor)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मही (प्रातिपदिक) + पति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Genitive (6th/षष्ठी), Singular (एकवचन); समासः षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष ‘lord of the earth’

Speakers

• Narrator/teacher figure addressing a listener (exact interlocutors not specified in the excerpt; typical Purāṇic frame is a sage explaining to a disciple).

Key Themes

• Narrative transition
• Explanation of prior events
• Royal-ethical context (king Suratha)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

Why does the verse begin with a rhetorical question (“What have you not understood?”)?

This is a common Purāṇic pedagogical device: the speaker marks a shift from summary to clarification, indicating that the listener’s doubt (saṃśaya) will be resolved by a more detailed account.

Who is “tanvaṅgī” here?

Tanvaṅgī is an epithet for a young woman central to the episode; the following verses show she becomes the agent of a curse connected with Suratha’s marital situation.

Does this verse contain any tīrtha or geographic marker typical of the Vāmana Purāṇa?

Not in this line; it functions as a narrative hinge. Geographic/tīrtha data must be extracted from surrounding verses when present.