Vamana Purana — Nara-Narayana's Tapas, Shloka 15

Nara-Narayana’s Tapas, Indra’s Temptation, and the Burning of Kama: The Origin of Ananga and the Shiva-Linga Episode

Devanagari script

मृगवृन्दाः पिञ्जरिता राजन्ते गहने वने पुलकाभिर्वृता यद्वत् सज्जनाः सुहृदागमे

Transliteration

mṛgavṛndāḥ piñjaritā rājante gahane vane pulakābhirvṛtā yadvat sajjanāḥ suhṛdāgame

Translation

ในพงไพรทึบ ฝูงกวางสีเหลืองอมน้ำตาลดูผุดผ่อง เปี่ยมด้วยขนลุกชัน ดุจคนดีเมื่อสหายอันเป็นที่รักมาถึง

Word by Word

• मृग-वृन्दाः: herds of deer
• मृग-वृन्दाः: कर्ता (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मृग (प्रातिपदिक) + वृन्द (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा, बहुवचन; तत्पुरुष: ‘मृगाणां वृन्दाः’ (herds of deer)

• पिञ्जरिताः: made tawny, yellowed
• पिञ्जरिताः: कर्ता-विशेषण (Subject qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पिञ्जरित (प्रातिपदिक; क्त from पिञ्जरि/पिञ्जर ‘to become tawny’)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा, बहुवचन; क्त-प्रत्यय (past participial adjective)

• राजन्ते: shine, look splendid
• राजन्ते: क्रिया (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: राज् (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन; आत्मनेपद

• गहने: dense, thick
• गहने: अधिकरण-विशेषण (Locative qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: गहन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; सप्तमी, एकवचन; विशेषण (qualifying वने)

• वने: in the forest
• वने: अधिकरण (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; सप्तमी, एकवचन

• पुलकाभिः: with thrills (horripilation)
• पुलकाभिः: करण (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुलक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), बहुवचन

• वृताः: covered, surrounded
• वृताः: कर्ता-विशेषण (Subject qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वृ (धातु)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा, बहुवचन; क्त-प्रत्यय (past passive participle)

• यद्वत्: just as
• यद्वत्: अव्यय-सम्बन्ध (Comparative connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यद्वत् (अव्यय)
• Form: उपमा/दृष्टान्त-वाचक अव्यय (correlative ‘just as’)

• सज्जनाः: good people
• सज्जनाः: उपमान (Standard of comparison)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सज्जन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा, बहुवचन

• सुहृद्-आगमे: at the arrival of a friend
• सुहृद्-आगमे: अधिकरण (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सुहृद् (प्रातिपदिक) + आगम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; सप्तमी, एकवचन; तत्पुरुष: ‘सुहृदः आगमः’ (arrival of a friend)

Speakers

• Narrative voice within the Purāṇic frame (commonly Pulastya → Nārada; not explicit here)

Key Themes

• Dharma of friendship (suhṛt)
• Auspicious emotion (pulaka as sāttvika-bhāva)
• Nature-human analogy

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

What is the philosophical or ethical takeaway?

The ethical ideal is the sajjana’s capacity for warm, spontaneous joy at reunion—friendship is treated as a dhārmic bond. The verse normalizes tenderness and emotional openness as virtues.

How does this fit the Pancalakshana?

Not a direct pañcalakṣaṇa category; it serves as didactic-poetic ornamentation within a broader narrative or geographical praise. Such verses often accompany tīrtha descriptions to evoke sāttvika mood in the listener.

What is the symbolic significance?

Pulaka (gooseflesh) is a classical marker of inner delight; projecting it onto deer suggests that the whole environment participates in auspiciousness. The forest becomes a moral theater where virtue is mirrored in nature.