Varaha Purana 3.16 — Adhyaya 3, Shloka 16

Nārada’s Account of a Former Birth and a Hymn to Nārāyaṇa

Devanagari script

सहस्रमूर्धानमनन्तपादम् अनेकबाहुं शशिसूर्यनेत्रम् । क्षराक्षरं क्षीरसमुद्रनिद्रं नारायणं स्तौम्यमृतं परेशम् ॥ ३.१६ ॥

Transliteration

sahasramūrdhānam anantapādam anekabāhuṁ śaśisūryanetram | kṣarākṣaraṁ kṣīrasamudranidraṁ nārāyaṇaṁ staumyamṛtaṁ pareśam || 3.16 ||

Translation

أُسَبِّحُ ناراياṇa، الربَّ الأعلى: ذو الألفِ رأسٍ، والأقدامِ التي لا نهايةَ لها، والأذرعِ الكثيرة، والقمرُ والشمسُ عيناه؛ وهو الفاني والباقي معًا؛ الراقدُ على محيطِ اللبن؛ الخالدُ المتعالي.

Word by Word

• सहस्र-मूर्धानम्: having a thousand heads
• सहस्र-मूर्धानम्: कर्म (Karma/Object)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सहस्र (प्रातिपदिक) + मूर्धन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative), एकवचन; बहुव्रीहिसमासः—'सहस्राणि मूर्धानि यस्य सः' (having a thousand heads)

• अनन्त-पादम्: having infinite feet
• अनन्त-पादम्: कर्म (Object)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अनन्त (प्रातिपदिक) + पाद (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; बहुव्रीहिः—'अनन्ताः पादाः यस्य' (having endless feet)

• अनेक-बाहुम्: many-armed
• अनेक-बाहुम्: कर्म (Object)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अनेक (प्रातिपदिक) + बाहु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; बहुव्रीहिः—'अनेकाः बाहवः यस्य' (many-armed)

• शशि-सूर्य-नेत्रम्: moon-and-sun-eyed
• शशि-सूर्य-नेत्रम्: कर्म (Object)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शशि (प्रातिपदिक) + सूर्य (प्रातिपदिक) + नेत्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; बहुव्रीहिः—'शशिसूर्यौ नेत्रे यस्य' (whose eyes are moon and sun)

• क्षर-अक्षरम्: perishable and imperishable
• क्षर-अक्षरम्: कर्म (Object)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: क्षर (प्रातिपदिक) + अक्षर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; द्वन्द्वसमासः (itaretara)—'क्षरं च अक्षरं च' (perishable and imperishable)

• क्षीर-समुद्र-निद्रम्: resting in the milk-ocean
• क्षीर-समुद्र-निद्रम्: कर्म (Object)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: क्षीर (प्रातिपदिक) + समुद्र (प्रातिपदिक) + निद्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; बहुव्रीहिः—'क्षीरसमुद्रे निद्रा यस्य' (whose sleep/rest is in the ocean of milk)

• नारायणम्: Nārāyaṇa
• नारायणम्: कर्म (Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नारायण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• स्तौमि: I praise
• स्तौमि: क्रिया (Kriyā/Verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: स्तु (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), उत्तमपुरुष (1st person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• अमृतम्: immortal / nectar-like
• अमृतम्: कर्म (Object)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अमृत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषण (epithet)

• परेशम्: supreme Lord
• परेशम्: कर्म (Object)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: परेश (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषण—'पराणां ईशः' (Lord of the supreme/others)

Speaker

Varāha (default, speaker not explicit in excerpt)

Varaha Avatara Context

Varaha Avatara Context: {"is_varaha_focus":true,"aspect_highlighted":"cosmic_power","earth_interaction":"None (cosmic viśvarūpa description and Kṣīra-samudra-śayana imagery rather than direct Bhū-devī interaction)."}

Bhu Devi Dialogue

Bhu Devi Dialogue: {"is_dialogue":true,"speaker_role":"instructor","bhu_devi_state":"awed; receiving a cosmic-vision theology that dwarfs earthly distress","key_question":"How can the one Lord be simultaneously kṣara and akṣara, cosmic-bodied (thousand heads) and yet reclining in yogic sleep on the Milk Ocean?"}

Mathura Mandala

Mathura Mandala: {"is_mathura_related":false}

Dharma Shastra

Dharma Shastra: {"has_dharma_rule":false}

Vrata Mahatmya

Vrata Mahatmya: {"has_vrata":false}

Cosmic Boar Symbolism

Cosmic Boar Symbolism: {"has_symbolism":true,"symbolic_interpretation":"The hymn universalizes the avatāra context: Varāha’s manifest form is grounded in the viśvarūpa Nārāyaṇa whose body is the cosmos; the Lord’s ‘sleep’ signifies yogic withdrawal preceding creation—supporting the avatāra’s power to restore worlds.","yajna_varaha_imagery":"Not explicit to Varāha; explicit cosmic-body mapping: eyes = sun and moon; heads/feet/arms = totality of beings and directions; kṣara/akṣara = manifest/unmanifest domains held in one.","vedantic_connection":"Non-dual theism: the Supreme as both immanent (kṣara) and transcendent (akṣara), deathless (amṛta) and supreme (pareśa); aligns with Gītā’s kṣara/akṣara/puruṣottama triad."}

Philosophical Teaching

Philosophical Teaching: {"has_teaching":true,"teaching_type":"cosmic theology (viśvarūpa + ontological unity)","core_concept":"The Supreme encompasses opposites—perishable/imperishable—while remaining deathless; cosmic form and yogic repose are two modes of the same reality.","practical_application":"Meditate on the Lord as all-pervading yet inwardly still; use the imagery (sun/moon eyes, endless limbs) as a dhyāna to expand mind beyond narrow identity."}

Subject Matter

Subject Matter: ["Cosmology","Vaishnava theology","Epic-Puranic poetics"]

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: śānta

Geographic Context

Type: cosmic ocean (mythic geography)

Cross References

Related Themes: Varāha Purāṇa: passages describing Nārāyaṇa’s cosmic form and cosmic sleep as background to avatāra activity

Visual Art Cues

Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A grand viśvarūpa Nārāyaṇa with sun and moon as eyes, innumerable heads/arms/feet, simultaneously shown reclining on Ananta in the Ocean of Milk—cosmic immensity and serene sleep together.","item_prompts":["thousand-headed cosmic form (suggested, not literal)","sun and moon as eyes","Ananta-Śeṣa couch","Ocean of Milk with gentle waves","conch/discus/mace/lotus as optional attributes","starfield/cosmic backdrop"],"kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural: layered composition—upper viśvarūpa with solar/lunar eyes; lower Ananta-śayana on milky ocean; rich flat colors, ornate halo, rhythmic serpent coils.","tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore: central reclining Nārāyaṇa on Ananta with heavy gold-leaf; above/behind a stylized viśvarūpa aura containing sun/moon; jewel-toned ocean border.","mysore_prompt":"Mysore: elegant Ananta-śayana with soft shading; subtle superimposed cosmic silhouette for viśvarūpa; refined detailing of serpent hoods and calm facial expression.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari: lyrical milky ocean under a vast night sky; reclining Nārāyaṇa serene; sun/moon-eye symbolism integrated into a translucent cosmic form hovering above."}

Audio Atmosphere

Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"awe-filled, expansive, meditative","suggested_raga":"Malkauns","pace":"vilambita (slow)","voice_tone":"sonorous and spacious, sustaining long vowels to evoke cosmic scale"}

Tags

• Classical Literature
• Purāṇa Studies
• Vaiṣṇavism
• Sanskrit Hymnology

FAQs

What is the historical significance of this verse?

It exemplifies a common Purāṇic archival feature: an opening or embedded stuti (hymn) that frames the narrative with cosmological identifiers (e.g., solar-lunar imagery, cosmic body motifs) and links the text to wider Vaiṣṇava literary conventions.

Which geographic location is identified?

No terrestrial sacred site is named in this verse; the primary locus is cosmological—kṣīrasamudra (the Ocean of Milk), a mythic-cosmographic feature used across Purāṇic literature.

What is the primary ethical instruction?

Rather than a direct moral injunction, the verse conveys a philosophical principle: the supreme reality is described as encompassing both change (kṣara) and permanence (akṣara), encouraging a contemplative, integrative view of existence within the Purāṇic worldview.