Varaha Purana 151.36: Adhyaya 151, Shloka 36

The Sacred Greatness of Lohārgala

The ‘Iron-Bolt’ Tīrtha

Pūrva Bhāga · Tīrtha-Māhātmya (Nārada-kuṇḍa: Dhārā Description and Vow)

Devanagari script

पञ्च धाराः पतन्त्यत्र तालवृक्षसमोपमाः ॥ तत्र स्नानं तु कुर्वीत एकभक्तोषितो नरः

Recitation with translationVaraha Purana 151.36

Transliteration

pañca dhārāḥ patanty atra tālavṛkṣasamopamāḥ || tatra snānaṃ tu kurvīta ekabhaktoṣito naraḥ

ITRANS transliteration

Translation

Hier stürzen fünf Ströme herab, an Höhe Palmen gleich. Dort soll der Mensch ein Bad nehmen, nachdem er die Zucht geübt hat, nur einmal (am Tag) zu essen.

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Word by Word

• पञ्च: five
• Type: Adjective
• Form: अव्ययवत् संख्या-शब्दः; बहुवचनार्थे; विशेषणम् (धाराः)
• Role: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Root: पञ्चन् (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक)

• धाराः: streams
• Type: Noun
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन
• Role: Karta (कर्ता)
• Root: धारा (प्रातिपदिक)

• पतन्ति: fall
• Type: Verb
• Form: लट्-लकार (वर्तमान), प्रथम-पुरुष, बहुवचन; परस्मैपद
• Role: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Root: √पत् (धातु)

• अत्र: here
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक क्रियाविशेषण
• Role: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Root: अत्र (अव्यय)

• ताल-वृक्ष-सम-उपमाः: comparable to palm trees
• Type: Adjective
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; विशेषणम् (धाराः); समासः (तालवृक्षस्य समा उपमा यस्याः) — उपमान-निर्देशार्थे बहुपद-तत्पुरुषप्रायः
• Role: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Root: ताल (प्रातिपदिक) + वृक्ष (प्रातिपदिक) + सम (प्रातिपदिक) + उपमा (प्रातिपदिक)

• तत्र: there
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक क्रियाविशेषण
• Role: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)

• स्नानम्: bathing
• Type: Noun
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन
• Role: Karma (कर्म)
• Root: स्नान (प्रातिपदिक)

• तु: indeed/and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: अव्यय; निपात
• Role: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Root: तु (अव्यय)

• कुर्वीत: should do
• Type: Verb
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथम/मध्यम-पुरुष? एकवचन; परस्मैपद; विध्यर्थे (कर्तव्यम्) — सामान्यतः मध्यम-पुरुष एकवचन ‘(सः/त्वं) कुर्यात्’ अर्थे
• Role: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Root: √कृ (धातु)

• एक-भक्त-उषितः: having observed single-meal regimen
• Type: Adjective
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषणम् (नरः); समासः तत्पुरुष (एकभक्तेन उषितः = एकभक्त-नियमेन वासं कृतवान्)
• Role: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Root: एक (प्रातिपदिक) + भक्त (प्रातिपदिक) + उषित (√वस्, क्त-प्रत्यय; कृदन्त)

• नरः: a man
• Type: Noun
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन
• Role: Karta (कर्ता)
• Root: नर (प्रातिपदिक)

Sandhi Notes

• पतन्ति + अत्र → पतन्त्यत्र
• एकभक्त + उषितः → एकभक्तोषितः

Speaker and setting

Shanta and Adbhuta rasaSetting: Waterfall/stream-confluence tīrtha

Speaker

Varāha

Bhu Devi and Varaha

In this verse

Varaha teaches her

Her state of mind

Curious

What she asks

How should a pilgrim bathe and what restraint (ekabhakta) is required at this tirtha to gain its proper fruit?

The teaching

Kind of teaching

Karma-yoga / ritual-ethics

Subjects

Pilgrimage PracticeRitual BathingSacred HydrologyEthics (Austerity/Discipline)

Core idea

External purity (snāna) is strengthened by internal discipline (niyama), making the act spiritually efficacious.

In practice

When undertaking pilgrimage rites, pair the bath with a concrete restraint (e.g., ekabhakta) to cultivate steadiness and reduce indulgence.

Dharma

Mathura and Krishna

Cross references

Tags

• Classical Literature
• Purāṇic Studies
• Cultural Heritage
• Ecological Narratives

FAQs

What is the historical significance of this verse?

It preserves a ritual-ecological description of a water-site (multiple dhārās) and ties it to regulated conduct (eka-bhakta), reflecting how pilgrimage manuals encoded both landscape observation and ethical discipline.

Which geographic location is identified?

The verse continues the Nārada-kuṇḍa context (from the preceding line), describing its five descending streams; no external toponym is provided here.

What is the primary ethical instruction?

Undertake the snāna with self-restraint—specifically, observing an eka-bhakta regimen—linking bodily discipline with ritual practice.