Vamana Purana — Jabali on the Banyan Tree, Shloka 55

Jabali Bound on the Banyan Tree and Nandayanti’s Appeal at Sri-Kantha on the Yamuna

Devanagari script

अकृतार्थं नरपतिं योजनानि त्रयोदश अपकृष्टे नपरपतौ सापि मोहमुपागता

Transliteration

akṛtārthaṃ narapatiṃ yojanāni trayodaśa apakṛṣṭe naparapatau sāpi mohamupāgatā

Translation

Nhà vua, chí nguyện chưa thành, bị kéo đi xa mười ba do-tuần (yojana); và khi bậc chúa của loài người bị lôi đi, nàng cũng bị mê muội (moha) chế ngự.

Word by Word

• akṛta-arthaṃ: unsuccessful / unfulfilled
• akṛta-arthaṃ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a-kṛta + artha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; नञ्-तत्पुरुष ('whose purpose is not accomplished')

• nara-patiṃ: the king
• nara-patiṃ: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nara + pati (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष ('lord of men' = king)

• yojanāni: yojanas (a distance measure)
• yojanāni: Karma/Parimāṇa (कर्म/परिमाण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yojana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन (measure as extent)

• trayodaśa: thirteen
• trayodaśa: Parimāṇa (परिमाण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: trayodaśan (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: संख्या-शब्दः; yojanāni इत्यस्य विशेषणम् (thirteen as numeral qualifier)

• apakṛṣṭe: when (he/it was) drawn away
• apakṛṣṭe: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: apa-√kṛṣ (धातु) + apakṛṣṭa (कृदन्त, क्त)
• Form: कृदन्त (PPP/क्त), सप्तमी, एकवचन (locative absolute/temporal)

• na-para-patau: with no other husband
• na-para-patau: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: na + para + pati (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन; नञ्-तत्पुरुष ('in the absence of another husband')

• sā: she
• sā: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• api: also
• api: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: api (अव्यय)
• Form: अपि-निपात (also/even)

• mohaṃ: delusion
• mohaṃ: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: moha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• upāgatā: came to / fell into
• upāgatā: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: upa-√gam (धातु) + upāgata (कृदन्त, क्त)
• Form: कृदन्त (PPP/क्त), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; कर्तरि-भावे

Speakers

• Not specified in the excerpt; narrative continuation describing the king’s displacement and the woman’s ensuing bewilderment.

Primary Deities

• Sarasvati (contextually, as the river whose waters act in the episode)

Key Themes

• Consequences of curse and fate
• Dislocation in sacred landscape
• Psychological aftermath (moha)
• Narrative mapping of space

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

{ "primaryRasa": "karuna", "secondaryRasa": "bhayanaka", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }

FAQs

Why does the text repeat the ‘thirteen yojanas’ detail?

Repetition in Purāṇic narration often functions as a mnemonic and as a geographic anchor—fixing the extent of displacement that may correspond to a later-identified tirtha segment or river-reach.

What is the significance of ‘akṛtārtha’ for the king?

It frames the king as removed before completing his intended act (ritual, meeting, or protection), heightening the moral-narrative tension that typically resolves through a tirtha act (bath, vow, or propitiation).

Does ‘moha’ imply a moral failing?

Not necessarily. In such episodes, moha can be an affliction produced by curse, separation, or divine/riverine power—setting up the need for guidance, purification, or recognition.