chalayasi vikramaṇe balim adbhuta-vāmana
pada-nakha-nīra-janita-jana-pāvana
keśava dhṛta-vāmana-rūpa jaya jagadīśa hare
"O Kesava! O Lord of the universe! O Lord Hari, who have assumed the form of a dwarf-brahmana! All glories to You! O wonderful dwarf, by Your massive steps You deceive King Bali, and by the Ganges water that has emanated from the nails of your lotus feet, You deliver all living beings within this world."
Holy Observance Overview
Appearance Date: Midday on Shravan Dwadashi (12th day of the waxing moon of Shravan)
Form: Dwarf Brahmana (Vamana)
Parents: Kashyapa Muni & Aditi Devi
Primary Pastime: Begging three paces of land from King Bali Maharaja to reclaim the universe.
Observance: Held on the scheduled event date. Please check the Vaishnava Calendar for the exact day this year.
Lord Vamanadeva appeared within this world from the womb of Aditi, the Mother of the Gods. He appeared at midday on the shravan-dvadasi, the 12th day of the lunar month of Shravan when the moon is waxing. The Supreme Lord appeared as the son of Kashyapa and Aditi in the form of a dwarf Brahmana (Vamana) to deliver Bali Maharaja, a great devotee born in the family of demons.
Vedic history tells of an incident many hundreds of thousands of years ago, during a period of conflict between the Devas and Danavas (universal governing forces and anti-government atheists), when the Danavas came to power, sending the legitimate royal families of Devas into hiding. The Devas prayed to Lord Vishnu, the maintainer of the universe, to help them regain their rightful properties and administrative posts.
"O wonderful dwarf, by Your massive steps You deceive King Bali, and by the Ganges water that has emanated from the nails of your lotus feet, You deliver all living beings within this world."
The Lord then appeared as a dwarf, the extraordinarily beautiful miniature child brahmana Vamanadeva. In this disguise, the all-powerful Supreme Personality of Godhead approached Bali Maharaja, king of the Danavas.
Bali could understand that Vamanadeva was a higher being, from His uncommon attractiveness and effulgence. The king was prepared to grant Him anything He asked for. On the pretense of begging, Vamanadeva asked Bali for a seemingly insignificant piece of real estate – three paces of land – to which Bali agreed, despite protests from his guru, Sukracarya.
Vamanadeva then assumed a gigantic form (Trivikrama) that covered the universe. With His first step, he reached to the heavenly planets, and with His second, He reached the limit of the universe. It appeared that Bali was unable to fulfill his promise, since he had promised Vamanadeva three steps, so he humbly asked the Lord to place His remaining step on his head.
For a more complete version of the history of Vamanadeva, please refer to the Srimad-Bhagavatam, Eighth Canto, chapters 18 and 19.
Lord Vamanadeva
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