Vamana Purana — Vamana's Birth, Shloka 30

Vamana’s Birth during Bali’s Horse-Sacrifice and the Mapping of Vishnu’s Sacred Presences

Devanagari script

समास्ते वितते यज्ञे सदस्यैरभिसंवृतः हयग्रीवप्रलम्बाद्यैर्मयबाणपुरोगमैः

Transliteration

samāste vitate yajñe sadasyairabhisaṃvṛtaḥ hayagrīvapralambādyairmayabāṇapurogamaiḥ

Translation

He sat (there) in the sacrifice that had been spread out (fully arranged), surrounded by the officiants and attendants—such as Hayagrīva, Pralamba, and others—with Maya and Bāṇa at the forefront.

Speakers

• Narrator continuing the description of Bali’s sacrificial court/assembly.

Primary Deities

• Viṣṇu (implicit, as Vāmana narrative context)

Key Themes

• Royal-sacrificial assembly (sadas)
• Daitya polity and hierarchy (named chiefs)
• Ritual setting as narrative stage for divine encounter

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

Who are the “sadasyas” in a yajña, and why are they important here?

Sadasyas are members of the ritual assembly—learned participants/overseers who ensure correctness and support the officiants. Their presence signals that the rite is public, formal, and socially validated.

Are Hayagrīva, Pralamba, Maya, and Bāṇa to be understood as deities?

They are primarily Daitya/Dānava figures (asura lineages) prominent in Purāṇic myth. Their mention highlights Bali’s powerful retinue and the political weight of the sacrificial gathering.

What narrative function does this verse serve in the Vāmana–Bali cycle?

It establishes the fully constituted sacrificial arena—Bali enthroned amid his chiefs and ritual assembly—so that Viṣṇu’s later arrival as Vāmana occurs before an authoritative, witness-filled court, intensifying the ethical stakes of promise, gift, and dharma.