Varaha Purana 70.18 — Adhyaya 70, Shloka 18
Nārāyaṇa as the Sacrificial Principle, Analysis of the Three Guṇas, and the Account of Delusion-Doctrines
रजसा तमसा युक्तः सोऽपि मां त्वसृजत् प्रभुः । यत्सत्त्वं स हरिर्देवो यो हरिस्तत्परं पदम् ॥ ७०.१८ ॥
rajasā tamasā yuktaḥ so 'pi māṃ tv asṛjat prabhuḥ | yat sattvaṃ sa harir devo yo haris tat paraṃ padam || 70.18 ||
Mit Rajas und Tamas verbunden, erschuf jener Herr auch mich. Was Sattva ist, das ist Hari, der Göttliche; und Hari ist der höchste Zustand (das höchste Ziel).
Varāha (default dialogue frame; speaker not explicit in excerpt)
Varaha Avatara Context: {"is_varaha_focus":false,"aspect_highlighted":"None","boar_form_detail":"None","earth_interaction":"None"}
Bhu Devi Dialogue: {"is_dialogue":false,"speaker_role":"instructor","bhu_devi_state":"None","key_question":"None"}
Mathura Mandala: {"is_mathura_related":false,"specific_site":"None","parikrama_context":"None","krishna_connection":"None"}
Dharma Shastra: {"has_dharma_rule":false,"topic":"None","instruction_summary":"None","karmic_consequence":"None"}
Vrata Mahatmya: {"has_vrata":false,"vrata_name":"None","tithi_month":"None","promised_fruit":"None"}
Cosmic Boar Symbolism: {"has_symbolism":true,"symbolic_interpretation":"A theological hierarchy is asserted through guṇas: sattva is identified with Hari, and Hari with the supreme goal; rajas-tamas belong to derivative creative/functional manifestations.","yajna_varaha_imagery":"Sattva as the ‘clarifying’ sacrificial fire/light that reveals Hari; rajas-tamas as the operative but obscuring forces that generate differentiated beings (including the speaker’s functional identity).","vedantic_connection":"Bhakti-vedānta move: the highest puruṣārtha is Hari himself (not merely liberation as an abstract state); sattva is treated as a divine transparency leading to the Supreme."}
Philosophical Teaching: {"has_teaching":true,"teaching_type":"theology of guṇas and soteriology","core_concept":"Sattva is the divine transparency identified with Hari; Hari is the parama-pada (highest attainment).","practical_application":"Increase sattva (purity, truthfulness, restraint, devotion) as a means to orient consciousness toward Hari as the final end."}
Subject Matter: ["Cosmology","Philosophy (Guṇas)","Theology (Hari/Viṣṇu)"]
Primary Rasa: śānta
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
Type: conceptual-metaphysical
Related Themes: 70.70.20 (liberation through sattva; sattva as Nārāyaṇa); 70.70.19 (speaker’s rajas-tamas identity contrasted with Brahmā’s sattva-rajas)
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"Didactic tableau: Varāha/Viṣṇu as teacher indicating a luminous ‘sattva’ radiance labeled Hari, contrasted with darker rajas-tamas currents that generate embodied identity.","item_prompts":["teacher-figure gesture (upadeśa-mudrā)","three guṇa streams (white/gold for sattva, red for rajas, dark for tamas)","inscriptional motif ‘Hari/parama-pada’ as a glowing summit"],"kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural: symbolic guṇa bands around the deity; sattva rendered as bright halo; rajas/tamas as patterned red/black fields; calm instructive posture.","tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore: gold-leaf ‘parama-pada’ aura above Hari; jeweled guṇa motifs; strong contrast between luminous sattva and darker tamas paneling.","mysore_prompt":"Mysore: refined allegory with subtle color gradations; emphasis on serene face and luminous sattva glow.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari: minimal allegory—mountain-like ‘supreme state’ above, soft white sattva light leading upward; poetic negative space."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"didactic-serene","suggested_raga":"Yaman","pace":"medium","voice_tone":"clear, instructive, slightly uplifted"}
FAQs
It reflects a Purāṇic synthesis of cosmological creation-language with guṇa-theory (rajas, tamas, sattva), a conceptual vocabulary also prominent in classical Indian philosophical traditions.
No geographic location is specified in this verse; the content is primarily cosmological and theological.
Rather than a direct moral rule, the verse presents a philosophical hierarchy: sattva is associated with clarity and the divine principle (Hari), implying an evaluative preference for lucid discernment over states dominated by rajas and tamas.
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