Shloka 14

Indra's Campaign on Mount Malaya — Indra’s Campaign on Mount Malaya and the Birth of the Maruts (Origin of the Epithet Gotrabhid)

Devanagari script

तत्र नाम विभुर्लोभे शासनत्वात् शरैर्दृढैः पाकशासनतां शक्रः सर्वामरपतिर्विभुः

Transliteration

tatra nāma vibhurlobhe śāsanatvāt śarairdṛḍhaiḥ pākaśāsanatāṃ śakraḥ sarvāmarapatirvibhuḥ

Translation

तत्र पाकस्य लोभयुक्तस्य वVamana Purana,44,5,VamP 44.5,sārthe vāhaya rathaṃ harābhyāśaṃ mahābala yāvannihanmi bāṇaighaiḥ pramathāmaravāhinīm,सार्थे वाहय रथं हराभ्याशं महाबल यावन्निहन्मि बाणैघैः प्रमथामरवाहिनीम्,Andhaka Vadha,Yuddha-ājñā (Battle Command),Adhyaya 44 — Andhaka’s challenge and the onset of battle,44.5,sārthe vāhaya rathaṃ harābhyāśaṃ mahābala yāvannihanmi bāṇaighaiḥ pramathāmaravāhinīm,sārthe vāhaya rathaṃ harābhyāśaṃ mahā-bala | yāvan nihanmi bāṇaughaiḥ pramathāmara-vāhinīm ||,“O charioteer

Speakers

• Narrator explaining an epithet within the ongoing battle narration

Primary Deities

• Indra (Śakra)

Key Themes

• Name-etymology (nirukti) of divine epithets
• Indra’s kingship over the devas
• Moral coloring of the foe (lobha/greed)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

What is the function of this verse within the battle narrative?

It pauses the action to provide nirukti—an explanatory etymology—linking a well-known epithet of Indra (‘Pākaśāsana’) to a specific punitive act against a named adversary, Pāka.

Does ‘lobhe’ describe Indra or Pāka?

Grammatically and contextually it characterizes the adversarial figure (Pāka) as associated with greed, reinforcing the moral contrast: the deva’s ‘discipline’ subdues a greed-driven opponent.

Why do Purāṇas include such etymological explanations?

They serve mnemonic and theological purposes: epithets become anchored in narrative deeds, making divine names meaningful as summaries of cosmic functions (here, Indra as the punisher/subduer of disruptive forces).