Vamana Purana — Portents at Bali's Sacrifice, Shloka 81

Portents at Bali’s Sacrifice and the Kośakāra’s Son: The Power of Past Karma

Devanagari script

महापाशैः शृङ्खलाभिः समाहत्य च मुद्गरैः वध्यमानो ऽब्रुवमहं मा मा हिंसध्वमाकुलाः

Transliteration

mahāpāśaiḥ śṛṅkhalābhiḥ samāhatya ca mudgaraiḥ vadhyamāno 'bruvamahaṃ mā mā hiṃsadhvamākulāḥ

Translation

“Struck with great nooses and chains, and also with clubs, as I was being beaten (or put to death), I said: ‘Do not—do not harm me, O agitated ones!’”

Speakers

• Narrator (first-person) addressing the king’s armed servants directly within the recounted scene; overall narration to the Purāṇic audience (frame not specified).

Key Themes

• Ahimsa / plea for restraint
• Violence and coercion
• Endurance under assault
• Moral appeal to aggressors

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

Does ‘vadhyamāna’ mean execution or simply beating?

Vadhyamāna can denote being killed/executed, but in narrative usage it can also mean being violently assaulted as if for killing. The presence of clubs and chains supports a severe beating; the exact legal intent (execution vs. punishment) depends on adjacent verses.

What is the ethical signal of the plea ‘mā mā hiṃsadhvam’?

It foregrounds restraint and a dharmic appeal even under threat. In Purāṇic storytelling, such speech often marks the speaker as morally superior and prepares for a reversal (divine aid, revelation of identity, or the aggressors’ downfall).

Any geographical or tīrtha layer here typical of the Vāmana Purāṇa?

Not in these lines. They function as plot mechanics within a courtly episode; the text’s hallmark sacred-geography cataloguing is absent from the given verses.