Varaha Purana 4.18: Adhyaya 4, Shloka 18
On Nārāyaṇa’s Ten Avatāras and Eightfold Manifestations, and the Account of King Aśvaśirā
विप्रावूचतुः । क एष प्रोच्यते राजंस्त्वया नारायणो गुरुः । आवां नारायणौ द्वौ तु त्वत्प्रत्यक्षगतो नृप ॥ ४.१८ ॥
viprāvūcatuḥ | ka eṣa procyate rājaṁs tvayā nārāyaṇo guruḥ | āvāṁ nārāyaṇau dvau tu tvatpratyakṣagatau nṛpa || 4.18 ||
Die Brahmanen sprachen: „O König, wer ist der, den du als Nārāyaṇa, den Lehrer, verkündest? Denn wir zwei sind Nārāyaṇas, hier unmittelbar vor deinen Augen, o Herrscher.“
Vipras (two brahmins)
FAQs
It illustrates a common Purāṇic narrative technique: a dialogic exchange where authority and identity are tested through speech, emphasizing the social and intellectual role of brahmin interlocutors in royal settings.
No geographic location is named in this specific verse; it is centered on courtly dialogue and identification rather than sacred geography.
The verse foregrounds discernment in attribution of honorific titles (such as “guru” and “Nārāyaṇa”), encouraging careful recognition of authority rather than unexamined proclamation.
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