Varaha Purana 152.68: Adhyaya 152, Shloka 68

Praise of the Sacred Geography of Mathurā

Uttara Bhāga · Mathurā-māhātmya (Exemplary Resident: Brahmin-Yogin)

Devanagari script

तस्मिन् वरगृहे देवि ब्राह्मणो योगिनां वरः ॥ जातिस्मरो महाप्राज्ञो विष्णुभक्तो वसुन्धरे ॥

Recitation with translationVaraha Purana 152.68

Transliteration

tasmin varagṛhe devi brāhmaṇo yogināṃ varaḥ || jātismaro mahāprājño viṣṇubhakto vasundhare ||

ITRANS transliteration

Translation

In jener vortrefflichen Wohnstatt, o Göttin, ist ein Brāhmaṇa—der Beste unter den Yogins—der frühere Geburten erinnert, von großer Einsicht ist und Viṣṇu ergeben, o Erde.

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Word by Word

• तस्मिन्: in that (place)
• Type: Noun
• Form: पुं/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (अधिकरण), एकवचन
• Role: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)

• वर-गृहे: in the excellent house
• Type: Noun
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (अधिकरण), एकवचन; कर्मधारयः (वरं गृहं = excellent house)
• Role: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Root: वर (प्रातिपदिक) + गृह (प्रातिपदिक)

• देवि: O goddess
• Type: Noun
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन-विभक्ति, एकवचन
• Role: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Root: देवी (प्रातिपदिक)

• ब्राह्मणः: a Brahmin
• Type: Noun
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन
• Role: Karta (कर्ता)
• Root: ब्राह्मण (प्रातिपदिक)

• योगिनाम्: of yogins
• Type: Noun
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (सम्बन्ध), बहुवचन
• Role: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Root: योगिन् (प्रातिपदिक)

• वरः: the best
• Type: Noun
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; ‘श्रेष्ठः’
• Role: Karta (कर्ता)
• Root: वर (प्रातिपदिक)

• जाति-स्मरः: one who remembers (past) births
• Type: Adjective
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; उपपद-तत्पुरुषः (जातिं स्मरति इति)
• Role: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Root: जाति (प्रातिपदिक) + स्मर (प्रातिपदिक)

• महा-प्राज्ञः: greatly wise
• Type: Adjective
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; कर्मधारयः (महान् प्राज्ञः)
• Role: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Root: महा (प्रातिपदिक) + प्राज्ञ (प्रातिपदिक)

• विष्णु-भक्तः: devoted to Vishnu
• Type: Adjective
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (विष्णोः भक्तः)
• Role: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Root: विष्णु (प्रातिपदिक) + भक्त (प्रातिपदिक)

• वसुन्धरे: O Earth (Vasundharā)
• Type: Noun
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन-विभक्ति, एकवचन
• Role: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Root: वसुन्धरा (प्रातिपदिक)

Sandhi Notes

• वरगृहे = वर-गृहे (समास)
• जातिस्मरः = जाति-स्मरः
• महाप्राज्ञः = महा-प्राज्ञः
• विष्णुभक्तः = विष्णु-भक्तः।

Speaker and setting

Shanta and Adbhuta rasaSetting: Āśrama/abode (hagiographic site)

Speaker

Varāha

Bhu Devi and Varaha

In this verse

Varaha teaches her

Her state of mind

Curious, attentive to sacred geography and exemplary persons

What she asks

Implicit: who dwells in that sacred abode and what qualities mark the tīrtha’s sanctity?

The teaching

Kind of teaching

Bhakti-yoga / sādhū-saṅga

Subjects

EthicsHeritage SitesCosmology

Core idea

Tīrtha is not only water/land but also the presence of realized devotees; memory of past births signifies purified consciousness and continuity of saṃskāra.

In practice

Seek satsanga at pilgrimage sites; cultivate Viṣṇu-bhakti and yogic discipline so that wisdom (prajñā) matures.

The Varaha avatara

With the Earth

Varāha continues instructive narration to Bhū-devī, describing a resident saintly brāhmaṇa in the tīrtha-region.

Mathura and Krishna

Cross references

Tags

• Classical Literature
• Vaishnavism
• Yoga Traditions
• Hagiographic Motifs

FAQs

What is the historical significance of this verse?

It preserves an idealized portrait of a yogin-brāhmaṇa, useful for studying Purāṇic models of authority, memory, and devotion.

Which geographic location is identified?

The setting is an ‘excellent abode’ within the Mathurā-centered narrative landscape of the chapter.

What is the primary ethical instruction?

It highlights virtues of learning, disciplined practice, and devotion as exemplary traits within a culturally valued sacred environment.