Vamana Purana — Prahlada's Instructions to Bali, Shloka 51

Prahlada’s Instructions to Bali on Vishnu Worship, Monthly Gifts, and Building Hari’s Temple

Devanagari script

इत्थं स नृपतिः कृत्वा श्रद्दधानो जितेन्द्रियः ज्यामघो विष्णुनिलयं गत इत्यनुशुश्रुमः

Transliteration

itthaṃ sa nṛpatiḥ kṛtvā śraddadhāno jitendriyaḥ jyāmagho viṣṇunilayaṃ gata ityanuśuśrumaḥ

Translation

இவ்வாறு நம்பிக்கையுடனும் இந்திரியங்களை அடக்கியும் செயல்பட்ட அரசன் ஜ்யாமகன் விஷ்ணுவின் நிலையத்திற்குச் சென்றான் என்று மரபில் நாம் கேட்டுள்ளோம்.

Speakers

• Narrator (Purāṇic speaker) to a royal addressee (rājendra)
• continuing a tirtha/temple merit discourse

Primary Deities

• Vishnu

Key Themes

• Tirtha Mahima
• Phalaśruti (attainment of Viṣṇu’s abode)
• Śraddhā (faith)
• Indriya-nigraha (sense-control)
• Royal exemplum (king as model devotee)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

Who is Jyāmagha here, and why is he invoked?

Jyāmagha functions as a paradigmatic royal devotee: a king who performs the prescribed religious acts with śraddhā and self-restraint, thereby attaining Viṣṇu’s abode. In tīrtha-māhātmya sections, such exempla validate the efficacy of worship, pilgrimage, and temple-support.

What does “anuśuśrumaḥ” signal in Purāṇic style?

It marks received tradition—‘we have heard in succession’—a conventional Purāṇic device that frames the statement as part of an authoritative lineage of narration (śruti-smṛti-itihāsa-purāṇa continuity), rather than a personal claim.

Is “Viṣṇunilaya” a physical place in this chapter or a metaphysical goal?

In this verse it is primarily the metaphysical destination (Viṣṇuloka). The surrounding context (next verses) ties that goal to a concrete practice—following the ‘Jyāmagha path’ and establishing/worshiping Hari’s shrine—typical of Vāmana Purāṇa’s linkage of geography and soteriology.