Vamana Purana — Shukra's Curse on King Danda, Shloka 86

Shukra’s Curse on King Danda and Andhaka’s Challenge to Shiva

Devanagari script

अवतीर्य रथेभ्यस्ते स्नातुमभ्यागमन् नदीम् घृताच्यपि नदीं स्नातं सुपण्यमाजगाम ह

Transliteration

avatīrya rathebhyaste snātumabhyāgaman nadīm ghṛtācyapi nadīṃ snātaṃ supaṇyamājagāma ha

Translation

అప్పుడు వారు రథాల నుండి దిగివచ్చి స్నానార్థం నదిని సమీపించారు. ఘృతాచీ కూడా నదిలో స్నానం చేసి ‘సుపుణ్య’ అనే స్థలానికి వెళ్లింది.

Speakers

• Narrator voice within the Purāṇic dialogue (exact interlocutors not provided in prompt)

Primary Deities

• Vishnu
• Shiva

Key Themes

• Tīrtha-snāna (ritual bathing)
• Merit (puṇya) through sacred geography
• Movement between pilgrimage nodes

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

Who is Ghṛtācī and why is her bathing mentioned in a tīrtha context?

Ghṛtācī is an apsaras (celestial nymph) frequently appearing in Purāṇic narratives. Her presence at a river-bath underscores the river’s sanctity: even celestial beings participate in tīrtha-snāna, reinforcing the site’s merit-bestowing power.

Is ‘Supuṇya’ a descriptive adjective or a proper place-name here?

In this construction it functions as a proper noun—‘(to) Supuṇya’—indicating a named locality/tīrtha. The etymological sense (‘very meritorious’) also works as a semantic gloss, typical of Purāṇic toponymy where names encode the site’s spiritual efficacy.

What does descending from chariots signify in pilgrimage narration?

It marks a transition from travel to ritual action: dismounting precedes purification (snāna). Purāṇas often narrate such liminal acts to frame the river as a threshold into sacred space.