Vamana Purana — Sarasvata Hymn to Vishnu, Shloka 14

The Sarasvata Hymn to Vishnu (Vishnu-Pañjara) and the Redemption of a Rakshasa

Devanagari script

खड्गधाराज्वलज्ज्योत्स्नानिर्धूता ये ममाहिताः ते यान्तु सौम्यतां सद्यो गरुडेनेव पन्नगाः

Transliteration

khaḍgadhārājvalajjyotsnānirdhūtā ye mamāhitāḥ te yāntu saumyatāṃ sadyo garuḍeneva pannagāḥ

Translation

ขอให้เหล่าผู้เป็นศัตรูของข้าพเจ้า ผู้ถูกขับไล่ด้วยรัศมีอันลุกโชติช่วงตามคมดาบ จงกลับอ่อนโยนต่อข้าพเจ้าโดยพลัน ดุจงูทั้งหลายยอมสยบต่อหน้าครุฑ

Speakers

• Narrator/ritual voice (a protective utterance) addressing hostile beings; framed within the chapter’s tīrtha-related protective discourse

Primary Deities

• Vishnu
• Garuḍa

Key Themes

• Apotropaic prayer (protection)
• Pacification of hostile beings
• Divine weapon imagery (khaḍga-tejas)
• Vaishnava protective power

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

Why is Garuḍa used as the comparison in this verse?

Garuḍa is the archetypal nāga-śamana (serpent-subduer). The verse uses a well-known mythic relationship—serpents instinctively losing aggression before Garuḍa—to express immediate pacification of inimical forces.

Is the “sword’s radiance” literal or symbolic?

In Purāṇic protective language it is often symbolic: the ‘edge’ and ‘radiance’ signify irresistible divine tejas that dispels hostility, akin to the aura of a deity or consecrated weapon rather than an ordinary sword.

What is the practical function of such a verse in a tīrtha context?

Tīrtha-māhātmyas frequently include śānti/abhaya formulas to ensure safe pilgrimage and ritual performance—neutralizing threats from seen and unseen beings while one remains within the sacred landscape.