Varaha Purana 81.48 — Adhyaya 81, Shloka 48
Description of the Divine Mountain Abodes: Meru, Devakūṭa, and Kailāsa
तथा चान्तरतटेऽन्ये सुनान्नाम तस्यैव दक्षिणे त्रिंशद्योहनविस्तृतं द्विषष्टियोजनायामं पुरं कामरूपिणां दृप्तानां मध्यमे च तस्य हेमकूटे महादेवस्य न्यग्रोधः।
tathā cāntarataṭe 'nye sunān nāma tasyaiva dakṣiṇe triṃśadyojanavistṛtaṃ dviṣaṣṭiyojanāyāmaṃ puraṃ kāmarūpiṇāṃ dṛptānāṃ madhyame ca tasya hemakūṭe mahādevasya nyagrodhaḥ |
وكذلك على الضفة الداخلية قومٌ آخرون يُدعون سونان (Sunān)؛ وإلى جنوب تلك الناحية نفسها مدينةٌ للكاماروبين (Kāmārūpiṇs) المتكبرين، عرضُها ثلاثون يوجنة وطولُها اثنتان وستون يوجنة. وفي وسطها، على هيمكوطا (Hemakūṭa)، تقوم شجرةُ النيغروذ (البانيان) الخاصة بماهاديفا (Mahādeva).
Varāha
Varaha Avatara Context: {"is_varaha_focus":false,"aspect_highlighted":"None","boar_form_detail":"None","earth_interaction":"None"}
Bhu Devi Dialogue: {"is_dialogue":false,"speaker_role":"instructor","bhu_devi_state":"None","key_question":"None"}
Mathura Mandala: {"is_mathura_related":false,"specific_site":"None","parikrama_context":"None","krishna_connection":"None"}
Dharma Shastra: {"has_dharma_rule":false,"topic":"None","instruction_summary":"None","karmic_consequence":"None"}
Vrata Mahatmya: {"has_vrata":false,"vrata_name":"None","tithi_month":"None","promised_fruit":"None"}
Cosmic Boar Symbolism: {"has_symbolism":false,"symbolic_interpretation":"None","yajna_varaha_imagery":"None","vedantic_connection":"None"}
Philosophical Teaching: {"has_teaching":true,"teaching_type":"sacred-geography/cosmology","core_concept":"Tīrtha and sacred ecology: divinity is indexed in landscape through living symbols (nyagrodha) and measured cosmic space.","practical_application":"Approach sacred sites with reverence for both built heritage and living trees; treat the banyan as a dhārmic locus (protection, non-harm, circumambulation)."}
Subject Matter: ["Geography","Heritage Sites","Cosmology","Ecology"]
Primary Rasa: adbhuta
Secondary Rasa: shanta
Type: sacred city/region with mountain-hill and sacred tree
Related Themes: Varāha Purāṇa 81 (Kailāsa-varṇana section begins next)
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A vast walled city stretched across the horizon, with Hemakūṭa rising at its center; atop it stands a monumental banyan tree associated with Mahādeva, while the inner riverbank shows smaller settlements named Sunān.","item_prompts":["wide panoramic cityscape","distance markers/yojana symbolism (milestones, measuring cord motif)","central golden hill (Hemakūṭa)","gigantic banyan with aerial roots","Śaiva signifiers near the tree (trident banner, liṅga pedestal implied)","river inner bank with huts/ghāṭa steps"],"kerala_mural_prompt":"Flat, saturated palette; central Hemakūṭa with stylized vaṭa canopy; minimal perspective; Śaiva emblems near the trunk; riverbank vignettes at margins.","tanjore_prompt":"Gold-leaf emphasis on Hemakūṭa and the banyan halo; ornate city gates; embossed foliage; Śiva’s presence suggested by a small liṅga shrine under the tree.","mysore_prompt":"Refined linework; soft shading on the hill; detailed banyan leaves and aerial roots; balanced architectural detailing of the city plan.","pahari_prompt":"Layered hills with delicate trees; lyrical riverbank; small narrative clusters (Sunān dwellers); central vaṭa as a towering vertical accent."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"measured, descriptive, contemplative","suggested_raga":"Bhairav","pace":"medium-slow","voice_tone":"steady, cartographic clarity with reverent emphasis on 'Hemakūṭa' and 'nyagrodha'"}
FAQs
It combines spatial measurement with a ‘living landmark’ (nyagrodha), showing how Purāṇic geography links settlement, topography, and culturally protected trees.
Antarataṭa, a southern city of the Kāmārūpiṇs, and Hemakūṭa featuring a notable nyagrodha associated with Mahādeva; these are presented within Purāṇic sacred topography.
By foregrounding a venerable tree as a central landmark, the passage implicitly supports conservation of significant natural features as part of cultural heritage.
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