Varaha Purana 135.5: Adhyaya 135, Shloka 5
Prescriptions for Expiation of Offences: Red/Black Garments, Improper Touch in Darkness, Impure Leftovers, Eating Boar-Meat, and Consuming Jālapāda
एकाहारं ततः कृत्वा दिनानि दश सप्त च ॥ वायुभक्षस्त्रीण्यहानि दिनमेकं जलाशनः ॥
ekāhāraṃ tataḥ kṛtvā dināni daśa sapta ca || vāyubhakṣas trīṇy ahāni dinam ekaṃ jalāśanaḥ ||
Dann, indem er nur eine Mahlzeit (am Tag) zu sich nimmt, siebzehn Tage lang; drei Tage lang vom Wind lebend (d. h. fastend) und einen Tag lang nur von Wasser zehrend.
Varāha
Varaha Avatara Context: {"is_varaha_focus":true,"earth_interaction":"Varāha continues instructing Bhūmi by specifying the concrete regimen of expiation through controlled diet/fasting."}
Bhu Devi Dialogue: {"is_dialogue":true,"speaker_role":"instructor","bhu_devi_state":"attentive; receptive to procedural details","key_question":"What exact ascetic-dietary steps constitute the prāyaścitta regimen?"}
Mathura Mandala: {"is_mathura_related":false}
Dharma Shastra: {"has_dharma_rule":true,"topic":"prayaschitta","instruction_summary":"Perform a graded fasting regimen: one meal daily for seventeen days, then three days of complete fasting (‘air-only’), then one day on water.","karmic_consequence":"Proper completion effects purification and mitigates the fault; improper observance (breaking the regimen) weakens expiation and may require repetition/continued penance."}
Vrata Mahatmya: {"has_vrata":false}
Cosmic Boar Symbolism: {"has_symbolism":false}
Philosophical Teaching: {"has_teaching":true,"teaching_type":"ethical-ascetic discipline","core_concept":"Self-restraint (niyama) and tapas function as instruments of moral repair and purification.","practical_application":"Adopt structured restraint—graduated reduction of food and sensory indulgence—when undertaking repentance, under guidance and with health-appropriate care."}
Subject Matter: ["Ritual Practice","Ethics","Ascetic Discipline"]
Primary Rasa: śānta
Secondary Rasa: vīra
Related Themes: Varāha Purāṇa 135.4 (announcement of prāyaścitta); Varāha Purāṇa 135.6–135.7 (result: release and acceptance)
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A sequence-like depiction of an ascetic regimen being prescribed: measured meals, then fasting, then water-only—shown as symbolic vignettes around the teacher Varāha and listening Bhūdevī.","item_prompts":["counted days motif (beads/marks)","single meal bowl","empty plate/fasting symbol","water pot for jalāśana","Varāha teaching gesture","Bhūdevī attentive posture"],"kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural style: Varāha instructing with surrounding iconographic symbols—bowl, empty dish, kalaśa—arranged decoratively; earthy reds/ochres.","tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore style: gold-highlighted ritual vessels (bowl, kalaśa), Varāha with halo, Bhūdevī in rich attire; embossed day-count motifs.","mysore_prompt":"Mysore style: elegant minimal props—bowl and water pot—subtle narrative clarity, calm faces, fine ornamentation.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari style: small narrative panels showing stages of fasting around central dialogue; delicate landscape and gentle color washes."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"austere and methodical","suggested_raga":"Bhairav","pace":"measured","voice_tone":"firm, enumerative, precise"}
FAQs
It records graded ascetic dietary disciplines used as expiation, aiding comparative study with Dharma-śāstra fasting prescriptions.
No geographic location is specified.
Ethical repair is expressed through embodied discipline—regulated eating and fasting as a structured remedial practice.
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