Vamana Purana — Sacred Abodes of Vishnu & Shiva, Shloka 44

Catalogue of Vishnu and Shiva’s Sacred Abodes (Tirtha-Mahatmya within the Pulastya–Narada Frame)

Devanagari script

तथा पृथिव्यां ब्रह्मर्षे शालग्रामे स्थितो ऽस्मयहम् सजलस्थलपर्यन्तं चरेषु स्तावरेषु च

Transliteration

tathā pṛthivyāṃ brahmarṣe śālagrāme sthito 'smayaham sajalasthalaparyantaṃ careṣu stāvareṣu ca

Translation

அதேபோல், ஓ பிரம்மரிஷியே, பூமியில் நான் சாலக்ராமத்தில் நிலைகொள்கிறேன்; மேலும் நீர்-நில எல்லைவரை, சரமும் ஸ்தாவரமும் அனைத்திலும் நான் வியாபித்துள்ளேன்।

Speakers

• Deity (implied Viṣṇu/Nārāyaṇa speaking) to a brahmarṣi (addressed as ‘brahmarṣe’).

Primary Deities

• Vishnu (Narayana)

Key Themes

• Tirtha Mahima
• Divine Immanence (God present in all beings)
• Śālagrāma sanctity
• Pilgrimage geography

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

Why is Śālagrāma singled out as a place where the Lord ‘abides’?

Śālagrāma functions in Purāṇic geography as a paradigmatic Viṣṇu-abode on earth—both a physical tīrtha/kṣetra and the locus of the Śālagrāma-śilā tradition. The verse frames it as a terrestrial anchor-point of divine presence.

What does “moving and unmoving beings” (cara–sthāvara) imply here?

It is a standard cosmological totality: all life-forms and all fixed entities (trees, mountains, etc.). The statement asserts immanence—God’s presence is not confined to temples alone but extends through the whole created order.

Does the verse describe a boundary of sacred space?

Yes, rhetorically: “up to the limits of waters and lands” signals comprehensive pervasion of the world’s geography (jalas and sthalas), aligning tīrtha sanctity with a universal theology.