Vamana Purana — Battle at Mandara, Shloka 64

The Battle at Mandara: Vinayaka, Nandin, and Skanda Rout the Daitya Hosts

Devanagari script

पाशं शक्त्या समाहत्य चतुर्भिः शङ्करात्मजैः जगाम विलयं तूर्णमाकासादिव भूतलम्

Transliteration

pāśaṃ śaktyā samāhatya caturbhiḥ śaṅkarātmajaiḥ jagāma vilayaṃ tūrṇamākāsādiva bhūtalam

Translation

Bị bốn người con của Śaṅkara dùng vũ khí giáo đâm đánh, sợi thòng lọng (pāśa) liền tan rã rất nhanh—như mặt đất dường như biến mất vào bầu trời.

Speakers

• Narrator (Purāṇic voice)

Primary Deities

• Śiva (Śaṅkara)

Key Themes

• Neutralization of binding magic (pāśa)
• Divine weaponry (śakti)
• Asura-māyā vs deva-śakti

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

What is the ‘pāśa’ here—literal rope or a supernatural weapon?

In Purāṇic battle scenes, pāśa commonly functions as a binding astric/magical weapon (a fetter that immobilizes). The immediate ‘dissolution’ after being struck indicates it is not an ordinary rope but a weaponized snare or māyā-construct.

Why compare the pāśa’s disappearance to ‘earth vanishing into the sky’?

The simile emphasizes sudden, complete non-apprehension: just as earth cannot literally merge into the sky in ordinary perception, the pāśa becomes untraceable—suggesting the weapon’s form collapses back into subtle elements or is dispelled by superior divine force.

Does ‘śakti’ mean ‘power’ or ‘spear’ in this verse?

Context decides: paired with samāhatya (‘struck’) and the battle setting, śakti is best read as the spear/lance weapon (also famously associated with Skanda/Kumāra), rather than the abstract ‘power.’