Varaha Purana 113.20: Adhyaya 113, Shloka 20

Hymn to Varāha and Pṛthivī’s Inquiry

Prelude to the Sanatkumāra Dialogue

Devanagari script

पुनर्वराहरूपेण मां गच्छन्तीं रसातले ॥ उज्जहारैकदंष्ट्रेण भवानेव महार्णवात्

Recitation with translationVaraha Purana 113.20

Transliteration

punarvarāharūpeṇa māṃ gacchantīṃ rasātale || ujjahāraikadaṃṣṭreṇa bhavāneva mahārṇavāt

Translation

Wiederum, in der Gestalt des Varāha, hast du selbst mich aus dem großen Ozean emporgehoben, als ich nach Rasātala hinabsank, mit nur einem einzigen Hauer.

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Word by Word

• punar: again
• punar: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: punar (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya (अव्यय), adverb (क्रियाविशेषण)

• varāha-rūpeṇa: in the form of a boar
• varāha-rūpeṇa: Karaṇa (करण/Instrument)
• Type: Noun
• Root: varāha (प्रातिपदिक) + rūpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Singular (एकवचन); तत्पुरुष-समास (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष): ‘varāhasya rūpam’

• mām: me
• mām: Karma (कर्म/Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Pronoun (सर्वनाम), Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular (एकवचन)

• gacchantīm: (me) going / descending
• gacchantīm: Karma (कर्म) — object qualified by participle
• Type: Verb
• Root: gam (धातु) → gacchantī (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Present active participle (वर्तमान-कर्तरि-शतृ), Feminine (स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular (एकवचन); agreeing with ‘mām’ (understood as feminine)

• rasā-tale: in Rasātala (netherworld)
• rasā-tale: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण/Location)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rasā (प्रातिपदिक) + tala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Locative (7th/सप्तमी), Singular (एकवचन); तत्पुरुष-समास (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष): ‘rasāyāḥ talaḥ’

• ujjahāra: lifted up / rescued
• ujjahāra: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ud-√hṛ (धातु)
• Form: Perfect (लिट्), Parasmaipada (परस्मैपद), 3rd person (प्रथमपुरुष), Singular (एकवचन)

• eka-daṃṣṭreṇa: with (his) single tusk
• eka-daṃṣṭreṇa: Karaṇa (करण/Instrument)
• Type: Noun
• Root: eka (प्रातिपदिक) + daṃṣṭrā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine (स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Singular (एकवचन); कर्मधारय-समास: ‘ekā daṃṣṭrā’

• bhavān: you
• bhavān: Kartā (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhavat (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Pronoun of respect (भवत्), Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular (एकवचन)

• eva: indeed / alone
• eva: Sambandha/Emphasis (निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya (अव्यय), emphatic particle (निपात)

• mahā-arṇavāt: from the great ocean
• mahā-arṇavāt: Apādāna (अपादान/Source)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + arṇava (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Ablative (5th/पञ्चमी), Singular (एकवचन); कर्मधारय-समास: ‘mahān arṇavaḥ’

Speaker

Pṛthivī

Tags

• Classical Literature
• Vaishnavism
• Ancient Geography
• Ecological Ethics

FAQs

What is the historical significance of this verse?

It preserves a key Purāṇic motif—Earth’s restoration (Pṛthivī-uddhāra)—which functions as a cultural memory of cosmic order (dharma) being re-established after disruption.

Which geographic location is identified?

Rasātala is a netherworld realm in Purāṇic cosmography; it is not a mappable terrestrial site but a conceptual ‘lower region’ within a multi-tiered universe.

What is the primary ethical instruction?

The verse frames restoration and protection of the world as a central responsibility of ideal sovereignty—cosmic care rather than domination.