Vamana Purana — Sin-Destroying Hymn (Part 1), Shloka 25

The Second Sin-Destroying Hymn (Pāpaśamana Stava) and the Syncretic Praise of Hari-Hara

Devanagari script

मूलं ते ब्राह्मणा ब्रह्मन् स्कन्धस्ते क्षत्रियोर्दिशः नाभ्या ह्यभूदन्तरिक्षं शशाङ्को मनसस्तव

Transliteration

mūlaṃ te brāhmaṇā brahman skandhaste kṣatriyordiśaḥ nābhyā hyabhūdantarikṣaṃ śaśāṅko manasastava

Translation

اے برہمن! برہمن تمہاری جڑ ہیں؛ کشتریہ سمتوں کی مانند تمہارا اسکَندھ (تنا) ہیں۔ تمہاری ناف سے اَنتریکش پیدا ہوا، اور تمہارے من سے ششاںک (چاند) ظاہر ہوا۔

Speakers

• Unspecified in input (a devotee/sage addressing the supreme deity)

Primary Deities

• Vishnu (as cosmic source)

Key Themes

• Varṇa symbolism
• Cosmic body/cosmic tree correspondences
• Creation of cosmic regions
• Integration of social order with cosmology

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

Does the verse teach a literal origin of social classes from the deity?

It is primarily symbolic and cosmological: varṇas are mapped onto the deity’s ‘tree/body’ to express that social order (dharma as structured society) is grounded in the sacred. It echoes older Purāṇic and Vedic idioms of correlating cosmos, body, and society.

Why are the Kṣatriyas linked with ‘directions’ and ‘trunk’?

The ‘directions’ (diśaḥ) represent protection and governance of space; Kṣatriya dharma is to guard the realm and uphold order. Calling them ‘trunk/directions’ suggests they function as the stabilizing axis and protective spread of the social organism.

What is meant by ‘from your navel arose the antarikṣa’ and ‘moon from your mind’?

The navel is a common Purāṇic generative locus (a center of emanation), here associated with the intermediate cosmic region. The moon’s association with mind reflects a widespread Indic correspondence (candra–manas), where lunar cycles mirror mental rhythms and soma symbolism.