Vamana Purana — Nara-Narayana's Tapas, Shloka 69

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

Devanagari script

संक्षुब्धान् भुवनान् दृष्ट्वा भूर्लोकादीन् पितामहः जगाम माधवं द्रष्टुं क्षीरोदं नाम सागरम्

Transliteration

saṃkṣubdhān bhuvanān dṛṣṭvā bhūrlokādīn pitāmahaḥ jagāma mādhavaṃ draṣṭuṃ kṣīrodaṃ nāma sāgaram

Translation

بھُورلوک وغیرہ تمام جہانوں کو مضطرب دیکھ کر پِتامہہ (برہما) مَادھو کے دیدار کے لیے کِشیروَد نامی سمندر کی طرف گئے۔

Word by Word

• saṃkṣubdhān: agitated/disturbed
• saṃkṣubdhān: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: saṃkṣubh (धातु)
• Form: Past passive participle (क्त), Masculine accusative plural; qualifying bhuvanān

• bhuvanān: worlds/regions
• bhuvanān: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhuvana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Accusative plural

• dṛṣṭvā: having seen
• dṛṣṭvā: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: dṛś (धातु)
• Form: Absolutive/Gerund (क्त्वा), ‘having seen’

• bhūḥ-loka-ādīn: (the worlds) beginning with Bhūrloka
• bhūḥ-loka-ādīn: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhūḥ (प्रातिपदिक) + loka (प्रातिपदिक) + ādi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Tatpuruṣa (तत्पुरुष) with ādi ‘beginning with’; Masculine accusative plural

• pitāmahaḥ: the Grandfather (Brahmā)
• pitāmahaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pitāmaha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative singular

• jagāma: went
• jagāma: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: gam (धातु)
• Form: Perfect (लिट्), 3rd person singular, Parasmaipada

• mādhavam: Mādhava (Viṣṇu)
• mādhavam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mādhava (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative singular

• draṣṭum: to see
• draṣṭum: Prayojana (प्रयोजन)
• Type: Verb
• Root: dṛś (धातु)
• Form: Infinitive (तुमुन्), ‘to see’

• kṣīrodam: Kṣīroda (Ocean of Milk)
• kṣīrodam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṣīra (प्रातिपदिक) + uda (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Tatpuruṣa (तत्पुरुष) ‘kṣīrasya udaṃ’; Masculine accusative singular; name of an ocean

• nāma: named/called
• nāma: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: nāma (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya, particle meaning ‘by name/called’

• sāgaram: ocean
• sāgaram: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sāgara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative singular

Speakers

• Primary narrative frame typically Pulastya → Nārada; internal action features Brahmā seeking Viṣṇu

Primary Deities

• Brahmā
• Viṣṇu (Mādhava)

Key Themes

• Sectarian Harmony
• Cosmic Administration (Brahmā consulting Viṣṇu)
• Cosmology
• Devotional Theism

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

What is the philosophical or ethical takeaway?

Even Brahmā, the cosmic ‘creator,’ seeks refuge in and counsel from Viṣṇu when order is threatened. The lesson is that authority is accountable to a higher sustaining principle; in crisis, one turns to the preserver (Mādhava) for restoration of balance.

How does this fit the Pancalakshana?

This supports Pratisarga/dharmic-restoration narrative logic: disturbance in the worlds prompts divine consultation leading to corrective action. It is not genealogy-focused (vaṃśa) but governance of cosmic order.

What is the symbolic significance?

Kṣīroda-sāgara is the archetypal locus of Viṣṇu’s repose and cosmic counsel. Brahmā’s movement toward the Milk Ocean symbolically represents returning to the source of stability (Viṣṇu) when the cosmos is ‘churned’ by upheaval.