taṁ narmadāyās taṭa uttare baler
taṁ narmadāyās taṭa uttare baler
ya ṛtvijas te bhṛgukaccha-saṁjñake
pravartayanto bhṛgavaḥ kratūttamaṁ
vyacakṣatārād uditaṁ yathā ravim
While engaged in performing the sacrifice in the field known as Bhṛgukaccha, on the northern bank of the Narmadā River, the priests, the descendants of Bhṛgu, saw that Vāmana, who was like the rising sun, was standing nearby.
|| 8.18.22 ||
te ṛtvijo yajamānaḥ sadasyā
hata-tviṣo vāmana-tejasā nṛpa
sūryaḥ kilāyāty uta vā vibhāvasuḥ
sanat-kumāro 'tha didṛkṣayā kratoḥ
O King! Because of Vāmanadeva's bright effulgence, the priests, along with Bali Mahārāja and all the members of the assembly, were robbed of their splendor. Thus they began to ask one another whether the sun-god himself, Sanat-kumāra or the fire-god had personally come to see the sacrificial ceremony.
|| 8.18.23 ||
itthaṁ saśiṣyeṣu bhṛguṣv anekadhā
vitarkyamāṇo bhagavān sa vāmanaḥ
chatraṁ sadaṇḍaṁ sajalaṁ kamaṇḍaluṁ
viveśa bibhrad dhayamedha-vāṭam
While the priests of the Bhṛgu dynasty and their disciples speculated in the this way, the Supreme Lord, holding in his hands a rod, umbrella and pot full of water, entered the arena of the horse sacrifice.
Just as the priests speculated, so the descendents of Bhṛgu speculated about Vāmanadeva. Hayamedha-vāṭam means the pavilion for the horse sacrifice.
|| 8.18.24-25 ||
mauñjyā mekhalayā vītam
upavītājinottaram
jaṭilaṁ vāmanaṁ vipraṁ
māyā-māṇavakaṁ harim
praviṣṭaṁ vīkṣya bhṛgavaḥ
saśiṣyās te sahāgnibhiḥ
pratyagṛhṇan samutthāya
saṅkṣiptās tasya tejasā
Seeing the brāhmaṇa dwarf, appearing to be a human being, enter the arena of sacrifice wearing a belt of muñja grass, a sacred thread, an upper garment of deerskin, and matted locks of hair, descendents of Bhṛgu and their disciples, their effulgence diminished along with that of the fire, stood up and welcomed him according to the rules.
They saw the Lord having the form of a small boy (māyā-mānavakam), with belt, sacred thread, and deerskin upper garment. Māyā can refer to the Lord’s svarūpa-śakti of the śruti says nitya-śaktyā māyākhyayā yutaḥ: the Lord is endowed with eternal śakti called māyā. They honored Vāmana by bowing, and offering foot water and arghya according to the rules (pratyagṛhnan). Medinī says pratigṛaha means acceptance, the rear guard of the army, a spittoon, a gift to the brāhmaṇas according to the rules
|| 8.18.26 ||
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