Varaha Purana 7.32: Adhyaya 7, Shloka 32

The Sanctity of Gayā: Raibhya’s Encounter and Hymn to Viṣṇu

Gadādhara

Pūrva Bhāga · Vaiṣṇava-stuti and devotional praxis (smaraṇa/praṇāma as soteriological discipline)

Devanagari script

सुरासुरैरर्च्चितपादपङ्कजं केयूरहाराङ्गद मौलिधारिणम् । अब्दौ शयानं च रथाङ्गपाणिनं गदाधरं प्रणमति यः सुखं वसेत् ॥ ७.३२ ॥

Recitation with translationVaraha Purana 7.32

Transliteration

surāsurair arcchitapādapaṅkajaṁ keyūrahārāṅgada-maulidhāriṇam | abdau śayānaṁ ca rathāṅgapāṇinaṁ gadādharaṁ praṇamati yaḥ sukhaṁ vaset || 7.32 ||

ITRANS transliteration

Translation

مَن يَخْضَعُ بخشوعٍ للربِّ حاملِ الهِراوة—الذي تُعْبَدُ لوتسُ قدميه من السورَةِ والآسورَةِ معًا؛ المتحلّي بالأساور والقلائد والحُلِيّ والتاج؛ الراقدِ على المحيط؛ والذي بيده القرص (التشاكرا)—يَسْكُنْ في السعادة.

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Word by Word

• sura-asuraiḥ: by gods and demons
• Type: Noun
• Form: Puṁliṅga, Tṛtīyā, Bahuvacana; द्वन्द्वः: 'by gods and demons'
• Role: Karaṇa (करण)
• Root: sura (प्रातिपदिक) + asura (प्रातिपदिक)

• arcchita-pāda-paṅkajam: whose lotus-feet are worshipped
• Type: Noun
• Form: Napumsaka, Dvitīyā, Ekavacana; बहुपद-तत्पुरुषः: 'whose lotus-feet are worshipped' (pāda-paṅkaja = karmadhāraya within)
• Role: Karma (कर्म)
• Root: arcchita/arcita (कृदन्त; √arc/अर्च्-पूजायाम्, PPP) + pāda (प्रातिपदिक) + paṅkaja (प्रातिपदिक)

• keyūra-hāra-aṅgada-mauli-dhāriṇam: wearing armlets, garlands, bracelets, and a crown
• Type: Adjective
• Form: Puṁliṅga, Dvitīyā, Ekavacana; समाहार-द्वन्द्वः listing ornaments + dhārin 'wearer' as final member (tatpurusha-like dependency)
• Role: Karma (कर्म)
• Root: keyūra (प्रातिपदिक) + hāra (प्रातिपदिक) + aṅgada (प्रातिपदिक) + mauli (प्रातिपदिक) + dhārin (प्रातिपदिक)

• abdau: in the ocean
• Type: Noun
• Form: Puṁliṅga, Saptamī (7th/सप्तमी), Ekavacana
• Role: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Root: abdi (प्रातिपदिक)

• śayānam: lying (reclining)
• Type: Adjective
• Form: Puṁliṅga, Dvitīyā, Ekavacana; वर्तमान-कृदन्त (present participle)
• Role: Karma (कर्म)
• Root: √śī (धातु; शी-शयने) + śayāna (कृदन्त; present active participle)

• ca: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: Avyaya; conjunction (समुच्चयबोधक)
• Role: Samuccaya (समुच्चय)
• Root: ca (अव्यय)

• ratha-aṅga-pāṇinam: having the discus in his hand
• Type: Noun
• Form: Puṁliṅga, Dvitīyā, Ekavacana; बहुपद-तत्पुरुषः: 'having the discus (rathāṅga) in hand'
• Role: Karma (कर्म)
• Root: ratha (प्रातिपदिक) + aṅga (प्रातिपदिक) + pāṇin (प्रातिपदिक)

• gadā-dharam: the mace-bearer
• Type: Noun
• Form: Puṁliṅga, Dvitīyā, Ekavacana
• Role: Karma (कर्म)
• Root: gadā (प्रातिपदिक) + dhara (प्रातिपदिक)

• praṇamati: bows down
• Type: Verb
• Form: Laṭ (Present), Prathama-puruṣa, Ekavacana, Parasmaipada
• Role: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Root: pra-√nam (धातु; नम्-प्रणामे)

• yaḥ: who
• Type: Noun
• Form: Puṁliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; relative pronoun
• Role: Karta (कर्ता)
• Root: yad (यद्-प्रातिपदिक)

• sukham: happily
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: Avyaya used adverbially
• Role: Kriyā-viśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Root: sukha (प्रातिपदिक)

• vaset: may dwell
• Type: Verb
• Form: Vidhi-liṅ (Optative), Prathama-puruṣa, Ekavacana, Parasmaipada
• Role: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Root: √vas (धातु; वस्-निवासे)

Sandhi Notes

• surāsurair → sura-asuraiḥ
• arcchitapādapaṅkajaṁ → arcchita-pāda-paṅkajam
• keyūrahārāṅgada-maulidhāriṇam resolved as keyūra-hāra-aṅgada-mauli-dhāriṇam

Speaker and setting

Bhakti and Shanta rasaSetting: Cosmic realm

Speaker

Varāha

The teaching

Kind of teaching

Theistic contemplation (upāsanā)

Subjects

Devotional PracticeIconographyEthics

Core idea

The Lord is the refuge of all beings and the object of worship even for opposing cosmic factions; his feet are the locus of surrender.

In practice

Meditate on the lotus-feet; integrate iconographic contemplation (cakra, gadā, śayana) into japa/pūjā to stabilize devotion.

Dharma

Mathura and Krishna

Cross references

Tags

• Classical Literature
• Purāṇa Studies
• Vaiṣṇavism
• Sanskrit Philology

FAQs

What is the historical significance of this verse?

It reflects a common Purāṇic literary mode: concise stuti (praise) linked to a practical discipline (praṇāma/bowing). Such verses document the standardization of Vaiṣṇava iconographic markers (cakra, gadā, ocean-reclining posture) and the ethical-psychological framing of devotion as a source of sukha (well-being).

Which geographic location is identified?

No terrestrial pilgrimage site is named in this verse. The setting is cosmographic: the deity is described as reclining 'in/on the ocean' (abdau śayānam), a mythic-ocean motif rather than a specific mapped location.

What is the primary ethical instruction?

The verse promotes a disciplined posture of reverence (praṇāma) toward an idealized, universally venerated figure, presenting respectful attention and humility as a means to cultivate sukha (stable well-being) rather than as coercive obligation.