Varaha Purana 155.52: Adhyaya 155, Shloka 52
The Efficacy and Sacred Merit of Akrūra Tīrtha
Uttara Bhāga · Dharma-kathā (Merit, Truth, and Liberation Aspiration)
सत्यपुण्यप्रभावेन यथाहं मुक्तिमाप्नुयाम् ॥ सुधन उवाच॥ नाहं दास्यामि ते पुण्यं नृत्यस्य नरभोजन
satyapuṇyaprabhāvena yathāhaṃ muktim āpnuyām || sudhana uvāca || nāhaṃ dāsyāmi te puṇyaṃ nṛtyasya narabhojana
satyapuNyaprabhAveNa yathAhaM muktimApnuyAm || sudhana uvAcha|| nAhaM dAsyAmi te puNyaM nRRityasya narabhojana
„Damit ich durch die Kraft von Wahrheit und Verdienst die Befreiung erlange.“ Sudhana sprach: „Ich werde dir mein Verdienst nicht geben – du Tänzer, Menschenfresser.“
Sandhi Notes
- यथाहं = यथा + अहम्
- मुक्तिमाप्नुयाम् = मुक्तिम् + आप्नुयाम्
- नाहं = न + अहम्
Brahma-rākṣasa (first half, aspiration); Sudhana (second half)
Can liberation be attained through the power of satya and acquired puṇya, and can such puṇya be demanded from another?
Mokṣa cannot be shortcut by coercive appropriation of another’s merit; liberation requires inner transformation, not merely borrowed puṇya.
Dedicate merit to the Divine or to genuinely reformed beings; do not yield to intimidation in spiritual matters; insist on repentance/ethical change as prerequisite.
Do not hand over hard-earned merit to an unworthy/violent claimant; merit-dedication must follow dharmic eligibility.
Refusal protects one’s spiritual capital and prevents empowering adharmic beings; improper gifting risks loss of merit and moral complicity.
Puṇya potent enough to be spoken of as supporting mokṣa-aspiration; its fruit is safeguarded by right intention and right recipient.
Varāha Purāṇa 155.54–57 (truth-test; vigil-merit request)
FAQs
It juxtaposes liberation language (mukti) with a moral negotiation about merit, illustrating how Purāṇic stories embed soteriology within social ethics and consent.
No location is specified in this verse.
Merit is treated as ethically non-transferable without justification; the refusal underscores accountability and the limits of spiritual bargaining.
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