Varaha Purana 136.17 — Adhyaya 136, Shloka 17
A Sūtra-like Manual of Expiations for Ritual Transgressions
हत्वा च बालान्वृद्धांश्च त्रिपुरे रूपिणीः स्त्रियः ॥ तेन पापेन सम्बद्धो न शक्नोति विचेष्टितुम् ॥
hatvā ca bālān vṛddhāṃś ca tripure rūpiṇīḥ striyaḥ || tena pāpena sambaddho na śaknoti viceṣṭitum ||
ত্রিপুরায় শিশু, বৃদ্ধ এবং রূপবতী নারীদের হত্যা করে, সেই পাপে আবদ্ধ হয়ে সে স্বাধীনভাবে ক্রিয়া করতে পারে না।
Varāha
Varaha Avatara Context: {"is_varaha_focus":true,"aspect_highlighted":"None","boar_form_detail":"None","earth_interaction":"Varāha narrates moral causality to Bhū-devī, describing heinous violence and its binding karmic effect (loss of freedom/agency)."}
Bhu Devi Dialogue: {"is_dialogue":true,"speaker_role":"instructor","bhu_devi_state":"disturbed/concerned; absorbing a grim ethical exemplum.","key_question":"How does grave हिंसा (killing the vulnerable) generate bondage that destroys one’s capacity to act freely?"}
Mathura Mandala: {"is_mathura_related":false,"specific_site":"None","parikrama_context":"None","krishna_connection":"None"}
Dharma Shastra: {"has_dharma_rule":true,"topic":"None","instruction_summary":"Severe violence—especially against children, the aged, and women—constitutes mahāpāpa leading to binding karmic obstruction and loss of agency.","karmic_consequence":"Perpetrator becomes ‘bound by sin’ (pāpa-bandha), experiencing incapacity, downfall, and constriction of will and power."}
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":"moral psychology / karma theory","core_concept":"Pāpa is not merely ‘punishment’ but a binding force that constricts agency (kartṛtva) and freedom (svātantrya).","practical_application":"Adopt ahiṃsā and protection of the vulnerable as a core ethic; recognize that unethical means corrode inner capacity and future action."}
Subject Matter: ["Ethics","Violence and Consequence","Mythic-Historical Narrative"]
Primary Rasa: karuna
Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka
Type: mythic-political space (Tripura motif)
Related Themes: Varāha Purāṇa 136 (continuation into the depiction of Maheśvara’s pallor and loss of powers)
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A stark narrative tableau of slaughter in Tripurā—children, elders, and women harmed—followed by the perpetrator shown shackled by an unseen ‘sin’ force, unable to move freely.","item_prompts":["Tripurā cityscape (fortified, threefold motif suggested)","figures representing children/elders/women (symbolic, non-graphic)","dark karmic bonds/ropes around the perpetrator","atmosphere of smoke/ruin","Varāha narrating to Bhū-devī at the edge of the scene"],"kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural: stylized Tripurā architecture; symbolic depiction of violence (avoid gore); dark coils representing pāpa-bandha; Varāha-Bhū-devī as framing narrators.","tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore: narrative paneling—Tripurā scene in one panel, bound figure in another; gold used sparingly to contrast dharma vs adharma; solemn faces.","mysore_prompt":"Mysore: restrained depiction, emphasis on pallor and bondage; architectural detail for Tripurā; moral gravity through muted tones.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari: dramatic hillside fort as Tripurā; expressive faces; symbolic black serpentine bonds; compassionate Bhū-devī reacting."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"somber, warning, heavy with consequence","suggested_raga":"Darbari Kanada","pace":"slow","voice_tone":"grave, emphatic"}
FAQs
It shows how Purāṇic texts narrativize moral injury: extreme violence is linked to loss of agency, providing material for studies of ethics and narrative causality in Sanskrit literature.
Tripurā is named; in Purāṇic usage it may function as a mythic locale associated with the Tripura narrative cycle rather than a single securely identified modern site.
The verse presents violence against vulnerable groups as generating binding consequences, diminishing autonomy and capacity for right action.
Ask anything about this verse
Curious about the meaning, context, or a word? Ask, and continue the conversation in the Vedapath app.
A free Google sign-in keeps your chat saved across web and the app.
Read Varaha Purana in the Vedapath app
Scan the QR code to open this directly in the app, with audio, word-by-word meanings, and more.