राम

Harivaṃśa-parva

Harivaṃśa · Adhyāya 34

51 versesThe Deva Host

Synopsis

Having heard of the daitya host, the reader is taken to the deva host for balance. Vaiśampāyana names the Ādityas, Vasus, Rudras, and the powerful Aśvins, each with their attendants, arming themselves in order. A hymn-like passage names Viṣṇu as "the drive of the light-giving heavenly bodies, the taster of tastes, the protector of herbs, the treasury of nectar." The chapter closes with a doubled blessing: Aṅgirā calls "svasti" upon the devas; Uśanas calls "svasti" upon the daityas. Both priestly houses guard their own.

First-pass synopsis; pending review by a Sanskritist.

Verse 1

श्रुतस् ते दैत्यसैन्यस्य विस्तरस् तात विग्रहे सुराणां सर्वसैन्यस्य विस्तरं वैष्णवं शृणु

śrutas te daityasainyasya vistaras tāta vigrahe surāṇāṃ sarvasainyasya vistaraṃ vaiṣṇavaṃ śṛṇu

'You have heard, father, the extent of the daitya army in the fight. Now hear the extent of the whole Vaiṣṇava army of the gods.'

Verse 2

आदित्या वसवो रुद्रा अश्विनौ च महाबलौ सबलाः सानुगाश् चैव संनह्यन्त यथाक्रमम्

ādityā vasavo rudrā aśvinau ca mahābalau sabalāḥ sānugāś caiva saṃnahyanta yathākramam

Verse 3

पुरुहूतस् तु पुरतो लोकपालः सहस्रदृक् ग्रामणीः सर्वदेवानाम् आरुरोह सुरद्विपम्

puruhūtas tu purato lokapālaḥ sahasradṛk grāmaṇīḥ sarvadevānām āruroha suradvipam

Verse 4

सव्ये चास्य रथः पार्श्वे पक्षिप्रवरवेगवान् सुचारुचक्रचरणो हेमवज्रपरिष्कृतः

savye cāsya rathaḥ pārśve pakṣipravaravegavān sucārucakracaraṇo hemavajrapariṣkṛtaḥ

Verse 5

देवगन्धर्वयक्षौघैर् अनुयातः सहस्रशः दीप्तिमद्भिः सदस्यैश् च ब्रह्मर्षिभिर् अभिष्टुतः

devagandharvayakṣaughair anuyātaḥ sahasraśaḥ dīptimadbhiḥ sadasyaiś ca brahmarṣibhir abhiṣṭutaḥ

Verse 6

वज्रविस्फूर्जितोद्धूतैर् विद्युदिन्द्रायुधार्पितैः गुप्तो बलाहकगणैः पर्वतैर् इव कामगैः

vajravisphūrjitoddhūtair vidyudindrāyudhārpitaiḥ gupto balāhakagaṇaiḥ parvatair iva kāmagaiḥ

Verse 7

यम् आरूढः स भगवान् पर्येति मघवान् गजम् हविर् धानेषु गायन्ति विप्रा मखमुखे स्थिताः

yam ārūḍhaḥ sa bhagavān paryeti maghavān gajam havir dhāneṣu gāyanti viprā makhamukhe sthitāḥ

Verse 8

स्वर्गे शक्रानुयातेषु देवतूर्यानुनादिषु इन्द्रं समुपनृत्यन्ति शतशो ह्य् अप्सरोगणाः

svarge śakrānuyāteṣu devatūryānunādiṣu indraṃ samupanṛtyanti śataśo hy apsarogaṇāḥ

Verse 9

केतुना वंशराजेन भ्राजमानो यथा रविः युक्तो हयसहस्रेण मनोमारुतरंहसा

ketunā vaṃśarājena bhrājamāno yathā raviḥ yukto hayasahasreṇa manomārutaraṃhasā

Verse 10

स स्यन्दनवरो भाति युक्तो मातलिना तदा कृत्स्नः परिवृतो मेरुर् भास्करस्येव तेजसा

sa syandanavaro bhāti yukto mātalinā tadā kṛtsnaḥ parivṛto merur bhāskarasyeva tejasā

Verse 11

यमस् तु दण्डम् उद्यम्य कालयुक्तं च मुद्गरम् तस्थौ सुरगणानीके दैत्यान् नादेन भीषयन्

yamas tu daṇḍam udyamya kālayuktaṃ ca mudgaram tasthau suragaṇānīke daityān nādena bhīṣayan

Verse 12

चतुर्भिः सागरैर् गुप्तो लेलिहद्भिश् च पन्नगैः शङ्खमुक्ताङ्गदधरो बिभ्रत् तोयमयं वपुः

caturbhiḥ sāgarair gupto lelihadbhiś ca pannagaiḥ śaṅkhamuktāṅgadadharo bibhrat toyamayaṃ vapuḥ

Verse 13

शङ्खमुक्तामलतनुः शीतीभूतो ऽयम् अम्बुपः कालपाशान् समाविध्य हयैः शशिकरोपमैः वाय्वीरितजलोद्गारैः कुर्वंल् लीलाः सहस्रशः

śaṅkhamuktāmalatanuḥ śītībhūto 'yam ambupaḥ kālapāśān samāvidhya hayaiḥ śaśikaropamaiḥ vāyvīritajalodgāraiḥ kurvaṃl līlāḥ sahasraśaḥ

Verse 14

पाण्डुरोद्धूतवसनः प्रवालरुचिराङ्गदः मणिश्यामोत्तमवपुर् हारभारार्पितोदरः

pāṇḍuroddhūtavasanaḥ pravālarucirāṅgadaḥ maṇiśyāmottamavapur hārabhārārpitodaraḥ

Verse 15

वरुणः पाशभृन्मध्ये देवानीकस्य तस्थिवान् वरुणः पाशहस्तः सन् देवानीके व्यतिष्ठत युद्धवेलाम् अभिलषन् भिन्नवेल इवार्णवः

varuṇaḥ pāśabhṛnmadhye devānīkasya tasthivān varuṇaḥ pāśahastaḥ san devānīke vyatiṣṭhata yuddhavelām abhilaṣan bhinnavela ivārṇavaḥ

Verse 16

यक्षराक्षससैन्येन गुह्यकानां गणैर् अपि मणिश्यामोत्तमवपुः कुबेरो नरवाहनः युक्तश् च शङ्खपद्माभ्यां निधीनाम् अधिपः प्रभुः राजराजेश्वरः श्रीमान् गदापाणिर् अदृश्यत

yakṣarākṣasasainyena guhyakānāṃ gaṇair api maṇiśyāmottamavapuḥ kubero naravāhanaḥ yuktaś ca śaṅkhapadmābhyāṃ nidhīnām adhipaḥ prabhuḥ rājarājeśvaraḥ śrīmān gadāpāṇir adṛśyata

Verse 17

विमानयोधी धनदो विमाने पुष्पके स्थितः स राजराजः शुशुभे युद्धार्थी नरवाहनः प्रेक्षमाणः शिवसखः साक्षाद् इव शिवः स्वयम्

vimānayodhī dhanado vimāne puṣpake sthitaḥ sa rājarājaḥ śuśubhe yuddhārthī naravāhanaḥ prekṣamāṇaḥ śivasakhaḥ sākṣād iva śivaḥ svayam

Verse 18

क्षौमवासाः शिवः साक्षाच् छिवरूपः स्वयं स्वयम् पूर्वं पक्षं सहस्राक्षः पितृराजस् तु दक्षिणम् वरुणः पश्चिमं पक्षम् उत्तरं नरवाहनः

kṣaumavāsāḥ śivaḥ sākṣāc chivarūpaḥ svayaṃ svayam pūrvaṃ pakṣaṃ sahasrākṣaḥ pitṛrājas tu dakṣiṇam varuṇaḥ paścimaṃ pakṣam uttaraṃ naravāhanaḥ

Verse 19

चतुर्षु युक्ताश् चत्वारो लोकपाला बलोत्कटाः स्वां स्वां दिशं ररक्षुस् ते तस्य देवबलस्य ह

caturṣu yuktāś catvāro lokapālā balotkaṭāḥ svāṃ svāṃ diśaṃ rarakṣus te tasya devabalasya ha

Verse 20

सूर्यः सप्ताश्वयुक्तेन रथेनाम्बरगामिना श्रिया जाज्वल्यमानेन दीप्यमानैश् च रश्मिभिः

sūryaḥ saptāśvayuktena rathenāmbaragāminā śriyā jājvalyamānena dīpyamānaiś ca raśmibhiḥ

Verse 21

उदयास्तगचक्रेण मेरुपर्यन्तगामिना त्रिदिवद्वारचित्रेण तपता लोकम् अव्ययम्

udayāstagacakreṇa meruparyantagāminā tridivadvāracitreṇa tapatā lokam avyayam

Verse 22

सहस्ररश्मियुक्तेन भ्राजमानेन तेजसा चचार मध्ये देवानां द्वादशात्मा दिनेश्वरः

sahasraraśmiyuktena bhrājamānena tejasā cacāra madhye devānāṃ dvādaśātmā dineśvaraḥ

Verse 23

सोमः श्वेतहयो भाति स्यन्दने शीतरश्मिवान् हिमतोयप्रपूर्णाभिर् भाभिर् आप्लावयञ् जगत्

somaḥ śvetahayo bhāti syandane śītaraśmivān himatoyaprapūrṇābhir bhābhir āplāvayañ jagat

Verse 24

तम् ऋक्षयोगानुगतं शिशिरांशुं द्विजेश्वरम् शशच्छायाङ्किततनुं नैशस्य तमसः क्षयम्

tam ṛkṣayogānugataṃ śiśirāṃśuṃ dvijeśvaram śaśacchāyāṅkitatanuṃ naiśasya tamasaḥ kṣayam

Verse 25

ज्योतिषाम् ईरणं व्योम्नि रसानां रसनं प्रभुम् ओषधीनां परित्राणं निधानम् अमृतस्य च

jyotiṣām īraṇaṃ vyomni rasānāṃ rasanaṃ prabhum oṣadhīnāṃ paritrāṇaṃ nidhānam amṛtasya ca

Verse 26

जगतः प्रथमं भागं सौम्यं शैत्यमयं रसम् ददृशुर् दानवाः सोमं हिमप्रहरणं स्थितम्

jagataḥ prathamaṃ bhāgaṃ saumyaṃ śaityamayaṃ rasam dadṛśur dānavāḥ somaṃ himapraharaṇaṃ sthitam

Verse 27

यः प्राणः सर्वभूतानां पञ्चधा भिद्यते नृषु सप्तस्कन्धगतो लोकांस् त्रीन् दधार चचार च

yaḥ prāṇaḥ sarvabhūtānāṃ pañcadhā bhidyate nṛṣu saptaskandhagato lokāṃs trīn dadhāra cacāra ca

Verse 28

यम् आहुर् अग्नेर् यन्तारं सर्वप्रभवम् ईश्वरम् सप्तस्वरगता यस्य योनिर् गीभिर् उदीर्यते

yam āhur agner yantāraṃ sarvaprabhavam īśvaram saptasvaragatā yasya yonir gībhir udīryate

Verse 29

यं वदन्त्य् उत्तमं भूतं यं वदन्त्य् अशरीरिणम् यम् आहुर् आकाशगमं शीघ्रगं शब्दयोनिनम्

yaṃ vadanty uttamaṃ bhūtaṃ yaṃ vadanty aśarīriṇam yam āhur ākāśagamaṃ śīghragaṃ śabdayoninam

Verse 30

स वायुः सर्वभूतायुर् उद्धतः स्वेन तेजसा प्रववौ व्यथयन् दैत्यान् प्रतिलोमः सतोयदः

sa vāyuḥ sarvabhūtāyur uddhataḥ svena tejasā pravavau vyathayan daityān pratilomaḥ satoyadaḥ

Verse 31

मरुतो देवगन्धर्वा विद्याधरगणैः सह चिक्रीडुर् असिभिः शुभ्रैर् निर्मुक्तैर् इव पन्नगैः

maruto devagandharvā vidyādharagaṇaiḥ saha cikrīḍur asibhiḥ śubhrair nirmuktair iva pannagaiḥ

Verse 32

यक्षैश् च सुमहाभोगैः पन्नगैर् गरुडैर् अपि सृजन्तः सर्पपतयस् तीव्रं रोषमयं विषम् शरभूताः सुरेन्द्राणां चेरुर् व्यात्तमुखा दिवि

yakṣaiś ca sumahābhogaiḥ pannagair garuḍair api sṛjantaḥ sarpapatayas tīvraṃ roṣamayaṃ viṣam śarabhūtāḥ surendrāṇāṃ cerur vyāttamukhā divi

Verse 33

पर्वतास् तु शिलाशृङ्गैः शतशाखैश् च पादपैः उपतस्थुः सुरगणान् प्रहर्तुं दानवं बलम्

parvatās tu śilāśṛṅgaiḥ śataśākhaiś ca pādapaiḥ upatasthuḥ suragaṇān prahartuṃ dānavaṃ balam

Verse 34

यः स देवो हृषीकेशः पद्मनाभस् त्रिविक्रमः कृष्णवर्त्मा युगान्ताभो विश्वस्य जगतः प्रभुः

yaḥ sa devo hṛṣīkeśaḥ padmanābhas trivikramaḥ kṛṣṇavartmā yugāntābho viśvasya jagataḥ prabhuḥ

Verse 35

समुद्रयोनिर् मधुहा हव्यभुक् क्रतुसत्कृतः भूम्यापोव्योमभूतात्मा स्यामः शान्तिकरो ऽरिहा

samudrayonir madhuhā havyabhuk kratusatkṛtaḥ bhūmyāpovyomabhūtātmā syāmaḥ śāntikaro 'rihā

Verse 36

जगयोनिर् जगद्बीजो जगद्गुरुर् उदारधीः सो ऽर्कम् अग्नाव् इवोद्यन्तम् उद्यम्योत्तमतेजसम् अरिघ्नम् असुरानीके चक्रं चक्रगदाधरः सपरीवेषम् उद्यन्तं सवितुर् मण्डलं यथा

jagayonir jagadbījo jagadgurur udāradhīḥ so 'rkam agnāv ivodyantam udyamyottamatejasam arighnam asurānīke cakraṃ cakragadādharaḥ saparīveṣam udyantaṃ savitur maṇḍalaṃ yathā

Verse 37

सव्येनालम्ब्य महतीं सर्वासुरविनाशिनीम् करेण कालीं वपुषा शत्रुकालप्रदां गदाम्

savyenālambya mahatīṃ sarvāsuravināśinīm kareṇa kālīṃ vapuṣā śatrukālapradāṃ gadām

Verse 38

शेषैर् भुजैः प्रदीप्तानि भुजगारिध्वजः प्रभुः दधारायुधजातानि शार्ङ्गादीनि महायशाः

śeṣair bhujaiḥ pradīptāni bhujagāridhvajaḥ prabhuḥ dadhārāyudhajātāni śārṅgādīni mahāyaśāḥ

Verse 39

स कश्यपस्यात्मभुवं द्विजं भुजगभोजनम् पवनाधिकसंपातं गगनक्षोभणं खगम्

sa kaśyapasyātmabhuvaṃ dvijaṃ bhujagabhojanam pavanādhikasaṃpātaṃ gaganakṣobhaṇaṃ khagam

Verse 40

भुजगेन्द्रेण वदने निविष्टेन विराजितम् अमृतारम्भनिर्मुक्तं मन्दराद्रिम् इवोच्छ्रितम्

bhujagendreṇa vadane niviṣṭena virājitam amṛtārambhanirmuktaṃ mandarādrim ivocchritam

Verse 41

देवासुरविमर्देषु शतशो दृष्टविक्रमम् महेन्द्रेणामृतस्यार्थे वज्रेण कृतलक्षणम्

devāsuravimardeṣu śataśo dṛṣṭavikramam mahendreṇāmṛtasyārthe vajreṇa kṛtalakṣaṇam

Verse 42

शिखिनं चूडिनं चैव तप्तकुण्डलभूषणम् विचित्रपत्रवसनं धातुमन्तम् इवाचलम्

śikhinaṃ cūḍinaṃ caiva taptakuṇḍalabhūṣaṇam vicitrapatravasanaṃ dhātumantam ivācalam

Verse 43

तीक्ष्णतुण्डोग्रनखरं चलत्पक्षसमाकुलम् स्फीतक्रोडावलम्बेन शीतांशुसमतेजसा भोगिभोगावसक्तेन मणिरत्नेन भास्वता

tīkṣṇatuṇḍogranakharaṃ calatpakṣasamākulam sphītakroḍāvalambena śītāṃśusamatejasā bhogibhogāvasaktena maṇiratnena bhāsvatā

Verse 44

पक्षाभ्यां चारुपत्राभ्याम् आवृत्य दिवि लीलया युगान्ते सेन्द्रचापाभ्यां तोयदाभ्याम् इवाम्बरम्

pakṣābhyāṃ cārupatrābhyām āvṛtya divi līlayā yugānte sendracāpābhyāṃ toyadābhyām ivāmbaram

Verse 45

नीललोहितपीताभिः पताकाभिर् अलंकृतम् केतुवेषप्रतिच्छन्नं महाकायनिकेतनम्

nīlalohitapītābhiḥ patākābhir alaṃkṛtam ketuveṣapraticchannaṃ mahākāyaniketanam

Verse 46

अरुणावरजं श्रीमान् आरुरोह रणे हरिः स्थितः समरदुर्जेयो दैत्यसैन्यं विलोकयन् सुपर्णः स्वेन वपुषा सुपर्णं खेचरोत्तमम्

aruṇāvarajaṃ śrīmān āruroha raṇe hariḥ sthitaḥ samaradurjeyo daityasainyaṃ vilokayan suparṇaḥ svena vapuṣā suparṇaṃ khecarottamam

Verse 47

दहंस् तस्थौ सुरानीके दैत्यान् अतिविभीषयन् तम् अन्वयुर् देवगणा मुनयश् च समाहिताः गीर्भिः परममन्त्राभिस् तुष्टुवुश् च गदाधरम्

dahaṃs tasthau surānīke daityān ativibhīṣayan tam anvayur devagaṇā munayaś ca samāhitāḥ gīrbhiḥ paramamantrābhis tuṣṭuvuś ca gadādharam

Verse 48

नमस् ते ऽस्तु हृषीकेश जहि दैत्यबलं विभो नमस् त्रिमूर्तये तुभ्यं हरिब्रह्मशिवात्मने नमस् त्रैविद्यरूपाय ऋक्सामयजुषे नमः नमो ऽस्तु योगिचिन्त्याय तेषां योगप्रदायिने नमो विकल्पशून्याय नमो विज्ञप्तिरूपिने यं च ज्ञानमयं तेजः प्रवदन्ति मनीषिणः तं नताः स्म जगन्नाथं जहि दैत्यगणान् हरे त्वां स्तोतुं हि वयं देव शक्ता वर्षशतैर् अपि न हि देव जगन्नाथ जयस्व पुरुषोत्तम इतीरितां गिरिं श्रुत्वा गन्तुम् अभ्युद्यतो हरिः तद् वैश्रवणसुश्लिष्टं वैवस्वतपुरःसरम् वारिराजपरिक्षिप्तं देवराजविराजितम्

namas te 'stu hṛṣīkeśa jahi daityabalaṃ vibho namas trimūrtaye tubhyaṃ haribrahmaśivātmane namas traividyarūpāya ṛksāmayajuṣe namaḥ namo 'stu yogicintyāya teṣāṃ yogapradāyine namo vikalpaśūnyāya namo vijñaptirūpine yaṃ ca jñānamayaṃ tejaḥ pravadanti manīṣiṇaḥ taṃ natāḥ sma jagannāthaṃ jahi daityagaṇān hare tvāṃ stotuṃ hi vayaṃ deva śaktā varṣaśatair api na hi deva jagannātha jayasva puruṣottama itīritāṃ giriṃ śrutvā gantum abhyudyato hariḥ tad vaiśravaṇasuśliṣṭaṃ vaivasvatapuraḥsaram vārirājaparikṣiptaṃ devarājavirājitam

Verse 49

चन्द्रप्रभाभिर् विमलं युद्धाय समवस्थितम् ययौ हितं देवपथं दीप्तभास्करतेजसम् पवनाविद्धनिर्घोषं संप्रदीप्तहुताशनम्

candraprabhābhir vimalaṃ yuddhāya samavasthitam yayau hitaṃ devapathaṃ dīptabhāskaratejasam pavanāviddhanirghoṣaṃ saṃpradīptahutāśanam

Verse 50

विष्णोर् जिष्णोः सहिष्णोश् च भ्राजिष्णोस् तेजसा वृतम् बलं बलवदुद्धूतं युद्धाय समवर्तत

viṣṇor jiṣṇoḥ sahiṣṇoś ca bhrājiṣṇos tejasā vṛtam balaṃ balavaduddhūtaṃ yuddhāya samavartata

Verse 51

स्वस्त्य् अस्तु देवेभ्य इति स्तुवंस् तत्राङ्गिराब्रवीत् स्वस्त्य् अस्त्व् इति स्तुवंस् तत्र देवान् आङ्गिरसो ऽब्रवीत् स्वस्त्य् अस्तु दैत्येभ्य इति उशना वाक्यम् अब्रवीत्

svasty astu devebhya iti stuvaṃs tatrāṅgirābravīt svasty astv iti stuvaṃs tatra devān āṅgiraso 'bravīt svasty astu daityebhya iti uśanā vākyam abravīt

'Svasti to the gods,' Aṅgiras said there, praising; 'Svasti,' the descendant of Aṅgiras said, praising the gods; 'Svasti to the daityas,' Uśanas said.

Verse commentary

The God Army and Its Two Priests

देवसेनायाः समुद्योगः — आङ्गिरस-उशनसौ च

Verses 1, 3, 12, 18, 22, 30, 51: the opening 'hear now the Vaiṣṇava host', Indra Puruhūta riding the world-elephant at the front, Varuṇa guarded by the four oceans and hissing serpents with a water-body, Śiva himself present while Indra-Yama-Varuṇa-Kubera hold the four directions, Sūrya the twelve-fold self riding in the midst with a thousand rays, Vāyu the life-breath-of-beings blowing against the demons, and the closing blessing-scene where Āṅgiras blesses the gods and Uśanas blesses the demons. Template commentary, pending Editorial Council review.

HV 34 is HV 33's mirror. Where the last chapter inventoried the demon army, this chapter inventories the gods'. Indra Puruhūta takes the front on the world-elephant; Varuṇa forms a water-body guarded by four oceans and hissing serpents; Śiva stands himself (*sākṣāt śiva-rūpaḥ*) while the four directional-kings hold the wings of the formation; Sūrya blazes in the midst as the *dvādaś-ātmā* 'twelve-fold-self'; Agni presides over the sacrificial fires of the camp; Vāyu — the breath of every being — blows against the demons; the Moon cools the divine host; and at the end the two priests speak in counterpoint: *Āṅgiras blesses the devas; Uśanas blesses the daityas.* The chapter's closing verse is one of the most remembered in the Harivaṃśa, because it names exactly the equal dignity of the two priesthoods. The Warkari reading notices the turn: the chapter that *might* have been a triumphalist catalog of divine power is, in its last verse, a confession that *both sides have a blessing-word*. Viṣṇu's victory in the next chapter will not rest on a larger army but on something the army cannot count.

HV 34.1

श्रुतस् ते दैत्यसैन्यस्य विस्तरस् तात विग्रहे । सुराणां सर्वसैन्यस्य विस्तरं वैष्णवं शृणु ॥

śrutas te daitya-sainyasya vistaras tāta vigrahe | surāṇāṃ sarva-sainyasya vistaraṃ vaiṣṇavaṃ śṛṇu

You have heard the vast array of the daitya-host for the conflict, dear one; now hear the extent of the Vaiṣṇava host — the host of all the suras.

The Living Words

*Śrutaḥ te daitya-sainyasya vistaraḥ*, 'you have heard the vast array of the daitya-host'. *Surāṇāṃ sarva-sainyasya vistaram*, 'the extent of the host of all the suras'. *Vaiṣṇavaṃ śṛṇu*, 'hear the Vaiṣṇava [host]'.

The Heart of It

The narrator's bridge is deliberate: the same word *vistara* — 'extent' — is applied to both sides. The chapter refuses the lazy distinction that would describe demons in detail and gods in abstraction. Both are *vistaras*, both have generals, chariots, weapons. The Warkari reading is that neither the demonic nor the divine can be met by imagination alone; both must be *śruta*, heard in detail. Jñāneśvar's Haripāṭh Abhaṅga 8 *savistarēṃ kathūnī* — 'having narrated in full extent' — honors the same *vistara* as the Harivaṃśa: only a detailed telling shows the truth. Edited summaries flatter the ego; full telling flattens it.

HV 34.3

पुरुहूतस् तु पुरतो लोकपालः सहस्रदृक् । ग्रामणीः सर्वदेवानाम् आरुरोह सुरद्विपम् ॥

puruhūtas tu purato loka-pālaḥ sahasra-dṛk | grāmaṇīḥ sarva-devānām āruroha sura-dvipam

Puruhūta — the world-guardian, thousand-eyed — at the front, chief-of-the-village of all the suras, mounted the divine elephant.

The Living Words

*Puruhūtaḥ purato loka-pālaḥ sahasra-dṛk*, 'Puruhūta at the front, world-guardian, thousand-eyed'. *Grāmaṇīḥ sarva-devānām*, 'chief-of-the-village of all devas'. *Āruroha sura-dvipam*, 'mounted the divine elephant'.

The Heart of It

Indra's titles form a careful hierarchy: *loka-pāla* (world-guardian) and *grāmaṇī* (village-chief). The second is striking — the king of heaven is called, with the most ordinary Sanskrit noun, *the headman of a village*. The Warkari reading loves this humility-in-title. Jñāneśvar's Haripāṭh Abhaṅga 26 *laghu mōṭha ekasamā* — 'small and great all equal' — treats the same scale-collapsing. The *grāmaṇī* of heaven and the *grāmaṇī* of Āḷandī do the same work. That Indra takes the front is itself a Warkari image: the one who leads also exposes himself first. The real mount is not the *sura-dvipa* but the courage to ride at the head.

HV 34.12

चतुर्भिः सागरैर् गुप्तो लेलिहद्भिश् च पन्नगैः । शङ्खमुक्ताङ्गदधरो बिभ्रत् तोयमयं वपुः ॥

caturbhiḥ sāgarair gupto lelihadbhiś ca pannagaiḥ | śaṅkha-muktāṅgada-dharo bibhrat toya-mayaṃ vapuḥ

Guarded by the four oceans and by hissing serpents, wearing arm-rings of conch and pearl, bearing a body made of water.

The Living Words

*Caturbhiḥ sāgaraiḥ guptaḥ*, 'guarded by the four oceans'. *Lelihadbhiḥ pannagaiḥ*, 'by the hissing/flickering serpents'. *Śaṅkha-muktā-aṅgada-dharaḥ*, 'wearing conch-and-pearl arm-rings'. *Bibhrat toya-mayaṃ vapuḥ*, 'carrying a body made of water'.

The Heart of It

Varuṇa's portrait is water-made and water-guarded: *toya-mayaṃ vapuḥ* — 'a body made of water'. The Warkari tradition reads water-divinity with particular tenderness. Jñāneśvar's *Indrāyaṇī*-bank at Āḷandī, Tukārām's *Indrāyaṇī*-dip at Dehū, the *Chandrabhāgā* at Paṇḍharpūr — the saints' lives all unfold beside rivers that stand for Varuṇa's body. HV 34.12's line *caturbhiḥ sāgaraiḥ guptaḥ* — 'guarded by four oceans' — is a cosmic zoom-out of the same image. The waters circle and protect. Jñāneśvar's Haripāṭh Abhaṅga 14 *tīrthāṃsī sār* — 'the essence that makes a place of pilgrimage' — finds in HV 34.12 its Sanskrit prototype. Water-body, water-guarded, and yet *śaṅkha*-wearing — the conch is the Lord's own signal-instrument. Even Varuṇa's ornaments are Viṣṇu's insignia. The god-army is already Vaiṣṇava in every ring.

HV 34.18

क्षौमवासाः शिवः साक्षाच् छिवरूपः स्वयं स्वयम् । पूर्वं पक्षं सहस्राक्षः पितृराजस् तु दक्षिणम् । वरुणः पश्चिमं पक्षम् उत्तरं नरवाहनः ॥

kṣauma-vāsāḥ śivaḥ sākṣāc chiva-rūpaḥ svayaṃ svayam | pūrvaṃ pakṣaṃ sahasrākṣaḥ pitṛ-rājas tu dakṣiṇam | varuṇaḥ paścimaṃ pakṣam uttaraṃ nara-vāhanaḥ

Clothed in kṣauma-linen, Śiva himself — in his own Śiva-form, by himself. Thousand-eyed [Indra] the east wing; the king of fathers [Yama] the south; Varuṇa the west; the man-mount-rider [Kubera] the north.

The Living Words

*Kṣauma-vāsāḥ śivaḥ sākṣāt*, 'clothed in kṣauma, Śiva himself in person'. *Śiva-rūpaḥ svayaṃ svayam*, 'in his own Śiva-form, by himself alone'. *Pūrvaṃ pakṣaṃ sahasrākṣaḥ*, 'east wing — thousand-eyed'. *Pitṛ-rājas tu dakṣiṇam*, 'king-of-fathers the south'. *Varuṇaḥ paścimam*, 'Varuṇa the west'. *Uttaraṃ nara-vāhanaḥ*, 'the man-mount-rider [Kubera] the north'.

The Heart of It

The verse is quietly radical: *Śiva* himself joins the Vaiṣṇava army, *sākṣāt śiva-rūpaḥ*. The four world-guardians (Indra, Yama, Varuṇa, Kubera) hold the four wings around him. The Warkari tradition's *Hari-Hara* devotion — that Viṣṇu and Śiva are *one* — has HV 34.18 as its Purāṇic seed. Jñāneśvar's Haripāṭh Abhaṅga 7 *hari-hara ekam-eka* — 'Hari and Hara are one-by-one' — speaks the same non-separation. Śiva is not *enlisted* for the battle; he is already part of the Vaiṣṇava host because there is no second army for the *avyakta* to belong to (HV 32.3 taught this). The four directional guardians around Śiva make a *maṇḍala*: this is not merely a battle-line; it is a cosmic *yantra* in motion.

HV 34.22

सहस्ररश्मियुक्तेन भ्राजमानेन तेजसा । चचार मध्ये देवानां द्वादशात्मा दिनेश्वरः ॥

sahasra-raśmi-yuktena bhrājamānena tejasā | cacāra madhye devānāṃ dvādaś-ātmā dineśvaraḥ

With thousand-rayed, gleaming brilliance, the twelve-fold-Self, lord of the day, moved in the midst of the devas.

The Living Words

*Sahasra-raśmi-yuktena bhrājamānena tejasā*, 'yoked with thousand-rayed, gleaming splendor'. *Cacāra madhye devānām*, 'moved in the midst of the devas'. *Dvādaś-ātmā dineśvaraḥ*, 'the twelve-fold-Self, Lord-of-the-day'.

The Heart of It

Sūrya is named *dvādaś-ātmā* — 'twelve-fold-self' — the Ādityas. This chapter sets his splendor not *above* the gods but *in their midst*: *cacāra madhye devānām*. The Warkari reading: true brilliance does not tower; it *walks among*. Jñāneśvar's Haripāṭh Abhaṅga 12 *sakhya-bhāvēṃ hari vāse* — 'Hari dwells in friend-feeling' — gives the same rule in bhakti-language. The Lord's radiance walks among his devotees, not above them. And *sahasra-raśmi* — thousand-rayed — is the demonic *timirodgāri-kiraṇa* of HV 33.10 answered: the demon's rays belched darkness; Sūrya's rays, *brājamāna*, gleam. Same twelve-month sun, answered in a single adjective.

HV 34.30

स वायुः सर्वभूतायुर् उद्धतः स्वेन तेजसा । प्रववौ व्यथयन् दैत्यान् प्रतिलोमः सतोयदः ॥

sa vāyuḥ sarva-bhūtāyur uddhataḥ svena tejasā | pravavau vyathayan daityān pratilomaḥ sa-toyadaḥ

That Vāyu — the life-breath of all beings — exalted by his own fire, blew tormenting the daityas, head-on, bearing clouds.

The Living Words

*Sa vāyuḥ sarva-bhūtāyuḥ*, 'that Vāyu, life-breath of all beings'. *Uddhataḥ svena tejasā*, 'exalted by his own fire'. *Pravavau vyathayan daityān*, 'blew tormenting the daityas'. *Pratilomaḥ sa-toyadaḥ*, 'against-the-grain, with clouds'.

The Heart of It

The finest title in the chapter: *sarva-bhūtāyur* — 'life-breath of all beings'. Vāyu is not *outside*; he is the *āyus* — the breathing lifespan — of every being, including the demons he now blows against. The Warkari reading: the Lord's agents fight *with* the very life His devotees breathe. There is no neutral ground. Jñāneśvar's Haripāṭh Abhaṅga 17 *śvāsa-svāsēṃ nāma* — 'the Name with every in-and-out-breath' — is HV 34.30's domestic form. Vāyu is the breath outside; the Name is the breath inside. And the direction-word *pratiloma* — 'against-the-grain, hair-backwards' — names how the Lord's breath meets the demonic: reversing the grain on which pride was combed smooth.

HV 34.51

स्वस्त्य् अस्तु देवेभ्य इति स्तुवंस् तत्राङ्गिराब्रवीत् । स्वस्त्य् अस्त्व् इति स्तुवंस् तत्र देवान् आङ्गिरसो ऽब्रवीत् । स्वस्त्य् अस्तु दैत्येभ्य इति उशना वाक्यम् अब्रवीत् ॥

svasty astu devebhya iti stuvaṃs tatrāṅgirā abravīt | svasty astv iti stuvaṃs tatra devān āṅgiraso 'bravīt | svasty astu daityebhya iti uśanā vākyam abravīt

Āṅgiras, singing-in-praise, said there: 'May there be *svasti* — well-being — for the devas.' Āṅgiras, singing-in-praise, said there to the devas: 'May there be *svasti*.' Uśanas spoke the word: 'May there be *svasti* for the daityas.'

The Living Words

*Svasty astu devebhyaḥ*, 'may there be svasti for the devas'. *Stuvan āṅgirā abravīt*, 'singing-in-praise, Āṅgiras said'. *Svasty astu daityebhyaḥ*, 'may there be svasti for the daityas'. *Uśanā vākyam abravīt*, 'Uśanas spoke the word'.

The Heart of It

The chapter's closing verse is one of the Harivaṃśa's most striking. The same word — *svasty astu*, 'may there be well-being' — is spoken by two priests for two sides. Āṅgiras blesses the devas; Uśanas (Śukrācārya) blesses the daityas. The Warkari reading is tender and sober: even in a cosmic war, *svasti* is the right word on both mouths. The demons too have a priest, and his blessing is not a lie; it is a *father's wish* for children whose side happens to be wrong. Jñāneśvar's own Haripāṭh Abhaṅga 27 *sakaḷāñcā kalyāṇa* — 'the welfare of all' — carries the same breadth. The saint does not *only* bless the devotees; he blesses all. The chapter's final word to the listener is that Viṣṇu's victory in the next chapter will *not* be a vindication of one *svasti* against another. It will fulfill the *svasti* both priests wished.

Thread

HV 34 mirrors HV 33 but lands, in its last verse, in a different country. Both armies are vast; both deserve *vistara*. The god-army carries, in its very weapons, signs of Viṣṇu (Varuṇa's conch-ring), and Śiva himself stands in its midst, folding the Hari-Hara unity into the military formation. Sūrya walks *among* the devas, not above them. Vāyu is the breath even of those he fights. And at the end the two priesthoods are shown blessing their respective sides with the same word. The Warkari tradition reads the whole chapter as a picture of the cosmos *praying for itself*: the gods arm as a cosmic yantra; the demons arm as their father-priest's children. Viṣṇu's coming in HV 35 will not be the victory of one *svasti* over another but the quiet fulfillment of the *svasti* that all speak.

Echo in the saints

Jñāneśvar's *sakaḷāñcā kalyāṇa* (Haripāṭh Abhaṅga 27) stands in the place HV 34.51 opens. The two priests of HV 34 are the Sanskrit ancestors of the Warkari line that will not bless only its own. Tukārām's *ekyē kāḷīñ buḍa-tē* — 'in one moment even the submerged rise' — reads the god-army's cosmic cooperation (34.18's four guardians around Śiva) as a picture of what the saṅgha-under-the-Name becomes. And the line *sarva-bhūtāyuḥ* (34.30) for Vāyu is echoed in the Haripāṭh's constant refrain that the Name is the breath of every lifespan — inside what Vāyu is outside.

Scripture references

EchoesBhagavad Gītā 10.21

Viṣṇu pervading each of the devas is the Gītā's *vibhūti-yoga* named in battle-array form.

आदित्यानाम् अहं विष्णुर् ज्योतिषां रविर् अंशुमान् । मरीचिर् मरुताम् अस्मि नक्षत्राणाम् अहं शशी ॥

ādityānām ahaṃ viṣṇur jyotiṣāṃ ravir aṃśumān | marīcir marutām asmi nakṣatrāṇām ahaṃ śaśī

Of the Ādityas I am Viṣṇu; of lights, the radiant sun; of the Maruts, I am Marīci; of the stars, I am the moon.

HV 34's catalogue — Sūrya as *dvādaś-ātmā* at 34.22, Vāyu at 34.30, Candra, the directional guardians — is Gītā 10.21's *vibhūti* played out as an army. Each god named is the Lord's own vibhūti; the Vaiṣṇava host is itself Viṣṇu in distributed form. The Warkari tradition reads the two verses as a single teaching: the army of HV 34 is the *vibhūti-yoga* marching.

EchoesBhagavad Gītā 9.29

Even the demons' priest blesses them. The Lord's own lordship includes both sides.

समो ऽहं सर्वभूतेषु न मे द्वेष्यो ऽस्ति न प्रियः । ये भजन्ति तु मां भक्त्या मयि ते तेषु चाप्य् अहम् ॥

samo 'haṃ sarva-bhūteṣu na me dveṣyo 'sti na priyaḥ | ye bhajanti tu māṃ bhaktyā mayi te teṣu cāpy aham

I am equal in all beings; none is hateful to Me, none dear. But those who worship Me with devotion — they are in Me and I in them.

HV 34.51's *svasti* from *both* priesthoods is the Gītā's *sama-bhāva* enacted at the priestly level. The Lord does not belong only to the side whose priest happens to be 'on our side'. The Warkari tradition's embrace of all castes and both priesthoods in one dindī stands in this Sanskrit ground.

BORI critical edition, ed. P. L. Vaidya (1969). Digital text from the GRETIL Zurich constituted text. Distributed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0.