Vamana Purana — Andhaka's Defeat & Redemption, Shloka 62

Andhaka’s Defeat, the Bhairava Manifestation, and His Redemption as Bhṛṅgī Gaṇapati

Devanagari script

त्वं ब्रह्म सृष्टिकृन्नाथस्त्वं विष्णुस्त्वं महेश्वरः त्वमिन्द्रस्त्वं वषट्कारो धर्मस्त्वं च सुरोत्तमः

Transliteration

tvaṃ brahma sṛṣṭikṛnnāthastvaṃ viṣṇustvaṃ maheśvaraḥ tvamindrastvaṃ vaṣaṭkāro dharmastvaṃ ca surottamaḥ

Translation

You are Brahmā, the Lord who performs creation; you are Viṣṇu; you are Maheśvara (Śiva). You are Indra; you are the vaṣaṭ-call (the sacrificial exclamation); you are Dharma; and you are the foremost among the gods.

Speakers

• Unnamed devotee/praiser addressing the Supreme Lord (Īśvara) in a hymn; interlocutors not specified in the given excerpt.

Primary Deities

• Brahmā
• Viṣṇu
• Maheśvara (Śiva)
• Indra

Key Themes

• Shaiva–Vaishnava Unity
• Non-dual/henotheistic identification of deities
• Yajña and Vedic ritual symbolism
• Dharma as cosmic principle

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

Why does the verse identify the praised deity as Brahmā, Viṣṇu, and Maheśvara simultaneously?

This is a classic Purāṇic stuti strategy: the addressed Lord is presented as the inner essence (antarātman) of all deities and functions—creation, preservation, and dissolution—thereby asserting a unified supreme reality while still honoring the traditional pantheon.

What is the significance of calling the deity ‘vaṣaṭ-kāra’?

‘Vaṣaṭ’ is the ritual utterance that consummates an oblation in Vedic yajña. By identifying the Lord with the vaṣaṭ-call, the hymn claims that the deity is not only the recipient of sacrifice but also the very ritual power and speech-act through which offerings become effective.

How does ‘Dharma’ function here—as a god or as a principle?

Purāṇas often treat Dharma both as a personified deity and as the impersonal moral-cosmic order. In this verse, the identification suggests both: the Lord is the source of righteous order and also the divine embodiment that sustains it.