Vamana Purana — Vamana's Birth, Shloka 11

Vamana’s Birth during Bali’s Horse-Sacrifice and the Mapping of Vishnu’s Sacred Presences

Devanagari script

ततो दूरादपश्यन्त वनषण्डं सुविस्तृतम् वनं हरगलश्यामं खगध्वनिनिनादितम्

Transliteration

tato dūrādapaśyanta vanaṣaṇḍaṃ suvistṛtam vanaṃ haragalaśyāmaṃ khagadhvaninināditam

Translation

Śukra—having understood the underlying reason—addressed Bali with these words."

Speakers

• Narrator continuing the account of the ṛṣis’ journey and perception.

Primary Deities

• Shiva (Hara/Nīlakaṇṭha)

Key Themes

• Sacred landscape description (vana as tīrtha-environment)
• Śaiva imagery embedded in geography
• Auspicious natural soundscape (bird-calls)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

Why compare the forest’s color to ‘Hara’s throat’?

The simile evokes Śiva as Nīlakaṇṭha (‘blue-throated’), linking the landscape’s dark hue to a well-known Śaiva mythic marker. In Purāṇic geography, such comparisons subtly sacralize terrain by mapping divine attributes onto natural features.

Does ‘hara-gala-śyāma’ necessarily mean the forest is literally blue?

Not necessarily. It denotes a deep dark/blue-black tone (śyāma) poetically intensified by the Nīlakaṇṭha reference—suggesting dense shade, moisture, or thick foliage.

What geographic data can be extracted from this verse for metadata purposes?

It identifies a large forest-grove (vanaṣaṇḍa, suvistṛta) characterized by avian sound (khaga-dhvani). While unnamed, it functions as a locational waypoint in the tīrtha itinerary and should be indexed as a forested sacred landscape element.