Vamana Purana — Nakshatra-Purusha Vrata, Shloka 17
The Nakshatra-Purusha Vrata: Worship of Vishnu’s Body as the Constellations
चरता तदरण्यं वै दुःखाक्रान्तेन नारद आत्मा इव शमीवृक्षो मरावासादितः शुभः
caratā tadaraṇyaṃ vai duḥkhākrāntena nārada ātmā iva śamīvṛkṣo marāvāsāditaḥ śubhaḥ
ஓ நாரதா, அந்த வனத்தில் அலைந்து, துயரால் பீடிக்கப்பட்ட அவன், பாலைவனப் பகுதியில் உயிருள்ளதுபோல�Vamana Purana,51,50,VamP 51.50,dhanakṣaye na muhyanti na hṛṣyanti dhanāgame dhīrāḥ kāryeṣu ca sadā bhavanti puruṣottamāḥ,धनक्षये न मुह्यन्ति न हृष्यन्ति धनागमे धीराः कार्येषु च सदा भवन्ति पुरुषोत्तमाः,Vamana-Bali Narrative,Dharma Teaching (Nīti on equanimity),Adhyaya 51 (Title not supplied in prompt; context: counsel to the Daitya-king within the Vamana–Bali episode),50,dhanakṣaye na muhyanti na hṛṣyanti dhanāgame dhīrāḥ kāryeṣu ca sadā bhavanti puruṣottamāḥ,dhanakṣaye na muhyanti na hṛṣyanti dhanāgame dhīrāḥ kāryeṣu ca sadā bhavanti puruṣottamāḥ,At the loss of wealth they do not become deluded
{ "primaryRasa": "karuna", "secondaryRasa": "shanta", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }
FAQs
In Purāṇic and Vedic imagination, the śamī is a resilient, sacred tree associated with protection, ritual fire, and auspiciousness. In an arid ‘maru’ landscape, its presence functions as a natural sanctuary and a narrative signpost—often preceding a significant encounter or revelation.
The phrase is primarily poetic personification: the tree stands ‘as if living,’ emphasizing its sheltering, life-giving quality in a harsh terrain. Purāṇas frequently treat certain trees as sacred loci, but this line itself does not explicitly identify an indwelling deity.
Even without naming a specific tīrtha here, the text maps pilgrimage experience through ecological markers (forest, desert, sacred tree). Such landscape cues often lead into the identification of a nearby sacred site or a moral-geographical lesson tied to place.