Vamana Purana — Jabali on the Banyan Tree, Shloka 10

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

Devanagari script

यदा तु लोकविद्विष्टं दुष्टं कर्म करिष्यति त्रैलोक्यजननीं चापि अभीवाञ्छिष्यते ऽधमः

Transliteration

yadā tu lokavidviṣṭaṃ duṣṭaṃ karma kariṣyati trailokyajananīṃ cāpi abhīvāñchiṣyate 'dhamaḥ

Translation

“然而当他行作世人所憎的恶业，并且那卑劣之徒竟还对三界之母起贪欲之心……”

Word by Word

• यदा: when
• यदा: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यदा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्ययम्; कालवाचक-सम्बन्ध (temporal conjunction)

• तु: but/then
• तु: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्ययम्; विरोध/अन्वय-निपातः (but/indeed)

• लोक-विद्विष्टम्: hated by the world
• लोक-विद्विष्टम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: लोक (प्रातिपदिक) + विद्विष्ट (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक, वि-द्विष्) (समास)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, द्वितीया-विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्; विशेषणम्; समासः—षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (लोकस्य विद्विष्टम् = by the world hated)

• दुष्टम्: evil
• दुष्टम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: दुष्ट (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, द्वितीया-विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्; विशेषणम्

• कर्म: deed/action
• कर्म: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कर्मन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, द्वितीया-विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्

• करिष्यति: will do
• करिष्यति: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: कृ (धातु)
• Form: लृट्-लकारः (Simple Future), प्रथम-पुरुषः, एकवचनम्, परस्मैपदम्

• त्रै-लोक्य-जननीम्: the mother of the three worlds
• त्रै-लोक्य-जननीम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: त्रैलोक्य (प्रातिपदिक; त्रि+लोक) + जननी (प्रातिपदिक) (समास)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्गे, द्वितीया-विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्; समासः—षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (त्रैलोक्यस्य जननी)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्ययम्; समुच्चय-निपातः

• अपि: also/even
• अपि: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्ययम्; निपातः

• अभी-वाञ्छिष्यते: will desire/long for
• अभी-वाञ्छिष्यते: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: अभि-वाñछ् (धातु)
• Form: लृट्-लकारः (Simple Future), प्रथम-पुरुषः, एकवचनम्, आत्मनेपदम्

• अधमः: the vile one
• अधमः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अधम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा-विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्

Speakers

• Narrative voice continuing the prophecy about the demonic offspring (Andhaka) and his future transgression.

Primary Deities

• Devi (Umā/Pārvatī implied by ‘trailokyajananī’)
• Shiva (implied as her consort and the eventual slayer in Andhaka-vadha)

Key Themes

• Adharma as lust and violation
• Cosmic order threatened by assault on the Goddess
• Foreshadowing of Andhaka’s downfall

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

Who is ‘trailokyajananī’ here?

In the Andhaka narrative tradition, ‘Mother of the three worlds’ most naturally indicates Umā/Pārvatī (the Goddess), whose inviolability symbolizes the stability of cosmic order.

Why is desiring the Goddess treated as a cosmic crime?

Purāṇic ethics frames such desire as more than personal immorality: it is an assault on the sacral center of the universe (Śiva-Śakti), triggering divine intervention to restore dharma.

Is this verse describing a specific event known from other Purāṇas?

Yes. The motif of Andhaka’s illicit desire for Pārvatī and his subsequent destruction by Śiva is widespread (notably in Śaiva Purāṇic cycles), and this verse serves as the Vāmana Purāṇa’s forward-looking cue.