Varaha Purana 149.9: Adhyaya 149, Shloka 9
The Sacred Geography and Merit of Dvārakā
Pūrva Bhāga · Cosmic Task and Return (Bhārāvataraṇa Motif)
भारावतरणं कृत्वा देवानां सुमहत्प्रियम् ॥ पुनरप्यागमिष्यामि स्वर्लोकं प्रति सुन्दरि ॥
bhārāvataraṇaṃ kṛtvā devānāṃ sumahat priyam || punar apy āgamiṣyāmi svarlokaṃ prati sundari
bhArAvataraNaM kRRitvA devAnAM sumahatpriyam || punarapyAgamiShyAmi svarlokaM prati sundari
Nachdem ich das «Herabsteigen und Abtragen der Last» vollbracht habe — ein Werk, das den Göttern überaus lieb ist — werde ich wieder gen Svarga zurückkehren, o Schöne.
Sandhi Notes
- punar api → punar apy (r + a → r a; api → apy before vowel)
- api āgamiṣyāmi → apy āgamiṣyāmi (y sandhi)
Varāha
Relieved yet attentive; receiving closure after the burden is removed
Cosmic balance is a moral imperative; divine action models the restoration of dharma for the welfare of all beings.
Leaders and individuals should act to reduce societal 'burden' (injustice/adharma) and then relinquish ego, returning to steadiness.
Addresses Bhū-devī directly as 'sundarī', reassuring her after restoring cosmic balance (burden-removal).
Varāha/Nārāyaṇa as the cosmic regulator who 'lifts' or 'removes' the world's burden—an image of dharma re-established by the Supreme's will.
Implicit: the act of burden-removal parallels yajña restoring ṛta.
Īśvara as dharma-saṃsthāpaka: the Lord acts for loka-saṅgraha, then returns to his own sphere, indicating transcendence beyond the act.
Restoring the world's balance (bharāvataraṇa) is presented as a divinely approved ethical duty that pleases the gods.
Upholding cosmic order brings divine approval and stability; neglect of balance implies continued disorder and suffering.
Indirect: sets the frame of divine intervention and restoration that later culminates in Yādava/Kṛṣṇa-cycle narratives.
Varāha Purāṇa: recurring 'bharāvataraṇa' motif in dialogue sections on cosmic maintenance
FAQs
The ‘burden-removal’ trope is a widespread Purāṇic narrative mechanism for explaining crisis, intervention, and restoration of socio-cosmic order.
Svargaloka (heaven) is a cosmological realm rather than a terrestrial geography; the earthly setting remains Dvārakā in context.
The verse frames governance and action as oriented toward relieving collective burdens and restoring balance.
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