Vamana Purana — Rudra's Wrath & Kalarupa, Shloka 57

Rudra’s Wrath at Daksha’s Sacrifice and the Iconography of Kālarūpa through the Zodiac

Devanagari script

मृगास्यो मकरो ब्रह्मन् वृषस्कन्धेक्षणाङ्गजः मकरो ऽसौ नदीचारी वसते च महोदधौ

Transliteration

mṛgāsyo makaro brahman vṛṣaskandhekṣaṇāṅgajaḥ makaro 'sau nadīcārī vasate ca mahodadhau

Translation

Ó Brāhmaṇa, o makara tem rosto de cervo e nasce com ombros e olhos de touro. Esse makara move-se nos rios e também habita no grande oceano.

Word by Word

• मृग-आस्यः: having a deer-like face/mouth
• मृग-आस्यः: Visheshana (विशेषण/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: मृग (प्रातिपदिक) + आस्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; कर्मधारयः (मृगस्येव आस्यं यस्य)

• मकरः: a makara (aquatic creature)
• मकरः: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मकर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• ब्रह्मन्: O Brāhman/Sage
• ब्रह्मन्: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन/Vocative address)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्रह्मन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th), एकवचन

• वृष-स्कन्ध-ईक्षण-अङ्गजः: born from/connected with the bull’s shoulder and gaze (epithet)
• वृष-स्कन्ध-ईक्षण-अङ्गजः: Visheshana (विशेषण/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वृष (प्रातिपदिक) + स्कन्ध (प्रातिपदिक) + ईक्षण (प्रातिपदिक) + अङ्गज (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; बहुपद-तत्पुरुषः (वृषस्य स्कन्धः, ईक्षणम्; अङ्गजः = अङ्गात् जातः)

• मकरः: the makara
• मकरः: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मकर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन (पुनरुक्ति/अनुवादार्थ)

• असौ: that one/he
• असौ: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: असद्/अदस्-प्रातिपदिक (सर्वनाम)
• Form: सर्वनाम, पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• नदी-चारी: moving in rivers
• नदी-चारी: Visheshana (विशेषण/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: नदी (प्रातिपदिक) + चारी (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; चारी = चर् (धातु) + णिनि/इन्; उपपद-तत्पुरुषः (नद्यां चरति)

• वसते: dwells
• वसते: Kriya (क्रिया/Verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वस् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्यय (conjunction)

• महा-उदधौ: in the great ocean
• महा-उदधौ: Adhikarana (अधिकरण/Location)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महा (प्रातिपदिक) + उदधि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), एकवचन; कर्मधारयः (महान् उदधिः)

Speakers

• Narrative frame not explicit in the given verses (often Pulastya ↔ Nārada in Vāmana Purāṇa); here the vocative 'brahman' indicates address to a Brāhmaṇa/sage

Key Themes

• Sacred Geography
• Cosmology (aquatic realms)
• Purāṇic Zoology / Mythic Beings

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

What is the philosophical or ethical takeaway?

The verse emphasizes the Purāṇic vision of a multi-layered cosmos where diverse beings inhabit appropriate domains (river and ocean), encouraging reverence for the ordered natural world rather than a direct moral injunction.

How does this fit the Pancalakshana?

Primarily aligns with sarga (descriptive account of beings/creation categories) in the broad sense, though presented here within a likely tīrtha/cosmographic descriptive passage.

What is the symbolic significance?

Makara, a liminal river–ocean creature, often symbolizes threshold zones and formidable watery power; its composite anatomy (deer/bull features) reflects Purāṇic mythopoesis that encodes awe of the aquatic unknown.