Shloka 8

Vamana's Three Steps — Vamana’s Three Steps and the Binding of Bali

Devanagari script

तदर्थमभियाच्ऽहं मम दानवपार्थिव मच्छरीरप्रमाणेन देहि राजन् पदत्रयम्

Transliteration

tadarthamabhiyāc'haṃ mama dānavapārthiva maccharīrapramāṇena dehi rājan padatrayam

Translation

اسی مقصد کے لیے، اے دانَوَ پارتھِو، میں آپ سے درخواست کرتا ہوں—اے راجن، میرے اپنے جسم کے پیمانے کے مطابق ناپ کر مجھے تین قدم زمین عطا کیجیے۔

Speakers

• Vāmana to Bali

Primary Deities

• Vishnu (Vāmana)

Key Themes

• Dana (charitable gifting)
• Kingship and patronage
• Vāmana’s vow and measured request
• Foreshadowing of Trivikrama
• Dharma vs. pride (implicit)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

Why does Vāmana specify ‘measured by my body’?

It underscores apparent smallness and humility: the request seems trivial for a universal monarch like Bali. This rhetorical minimization is central to the Vāmana motif—what is ‘small’ by human measure becomes immeasurable when the divine form expands.

Is ‘three steps’ already a known theological symbol here?

Yes. The ‘three strides’ (trīṇi padāni) echo the Vedic Viṣṇu (Trivikrama) theme. The Purāṇic narrative recontextualizes it as a dāna-request that tests the king’s dharma and exposes the limits of worldly sovereignty.

What dharma principle is being tested in Bali?

The integrity of dāna: a king’s promise to a worthy petitioner, especially in a yajña setting, is a public dharma-act. The narrative will contrast Bali’s generosity and vow-keeping with the cosmic claim of Viṣṇu over all realms.