Vamana Purana — Karmic Causes of Narakas, Shloka 53
Karmic Causes of Narakas and the Irremediability of Ingratitude (Kṛtaghna-doṣa)
कलासु मुख्या गणितज्ञता च विज्ञानमुख्येषु यथेन्द्रजालम् शाकेषु मुख्या त्वपि काकमाची रसेषु मुख्यं लवणं यथैव
kalāsu mukhyā gaṇitajñatā ca vijñānamukhyeṣu yathendrajālam śākeṣu mukhyā tvapi kākamācī raseṣu mukhyaṃ lavaṇaṃ yathaiva
«Entre as artes, a habilidade na matemática é a primeira; entre os ramos eminentes do conhecimento, o indrajāla (ciência de maravilhas e ilusão) é o principal. Entre os vegetais, a kākamācī é a primeira; e entre os sabores, o sal é o primeiro.»
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FAQs
The verse teaches discernment: within every domain (skills, knowledge-systems, foods, tastes) there are ‘principal’ elements that function as foundations—mathematics for structured arts, salt as a basic enhancer of taste, and so on. It encourages prioritizing essentials over the peripheral.
This is not sarga/pratisarga/vaṃśa/vaṃśānucarita/manvantara narrative material; it functions as ancillary didactic content (nīti/upadeśa) embedded within the Purāṇa’s broader discourse.
‘Gaṇita’ symbolizes order and measure; ‘indrajāla’ symbolizes the power (and ambiguity) of appearances; ‘salt’ symbolizes the indispensable ‘essence’ that makes experience intelligible. Together they contrast stable foundations with dazzling but potentially deceptive display.