Vamana Purana — Karmic Causes of Narakas, Shloka 55
Karmic Causes of Narakas and the Irremediability of Ingratitude (Kṛtaghna-doṣa)
यथा सतीनां हिमवत्सुता हि यथार्जुनीनां कपिला वरिष्ठा यथा वृषाणामपि नीलवर्णो यथैव सर्वेष्वपि दुःसहेषु दुर्गेषु रौद्रेषु निशाचरेश नृपातनं वैतरणी प्रधाना
yathā satīnāṃ himavatsutā hi yathārjunīnāṃ kapilā variṣṭhā yathā vṛṣāṇāmapi nīlavarṇo yathaiva sarveṣvapi duḥsaheṣu durgeṣu raudreṣu niśācareśa nṛpātanaṃ vaitaraṇī pradhānā
Kung paanong ang anak ni Himavat, si Pārvatī, ang pinakadakila sa mga babaeng banal; kung paanong si Kapilā ang pinakadakila sa mga Arjunī (isang uri/lahi); kung paanong ang bughaw na toro ang pinakadakila sa mga toro—gayon din, O panginoon ng mga naglalakad sa gabi, sa lahat ng nakatatakot, mahirap tiisin, marahas at mapanganib na pagtawid, ang Vaitaraṇī ang pinakapanguna, na tinatawag na “tagapagpabagsak ng hari” (nṛpātana).
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FAQs
The verse uses recognized ‘ideals’ (Pārvatī among satīs; exemplary animals among their kinds) to underscore discernment about what is truly foremost—including recognition of the most formidable obstacles (Vaitaraṇī) that symbolize the gravest trials of embodied existence and moral consequence.
It is not a direct treatment of sarga/pratisarga/manvantara/vaṃśa/vaṃśānucarita. It serves as moral-theological amplification (stuti/upadeśa) that can accompany tīrtha-māhātmya or dharma instruction depending on the surrounding chapter.
Himavatsutā represents steadfast dharma and auspicious power; the exemplary animals represent strength and excellence in worldly categories; Vaitaraṇī represents the ultimate ‘crossing’—death/afterlife accountability—thereby shifting the reader from everyday superlatives to existential seriousness.