Varaha Purana 82.18: Adhyaya 82, Shloka 18

The Descent of the Rivers: The Sky-Gaṅgā and Her Fourfold Division

Devanagari script

माल्यवतः पूर्वपार्श्वे पूर्वगण्डिका एकशृङ्गाद्योजनसहस्राणि मानतः तत्र च भद्राश्वा नाम जनपदाः भद्रशालवनं च तत्र व्यवस्थितम् ।

Sanskrit recitationVaraha Purana 82.18

Transliteration

mālyavataḥ pūrvapārśve pūrvagaṇḍikā ekaśṛṅgādy-yojanasahasrāṇi mānataḥ tatra ca bhadrāśvā nāma janapadāḥ bhadraśālavanaṃ ca tatra vyavasthitam

Translation

An der Ostseite des (Berges) Mālyavat liegt Pūrvagaṇḍikā; beginnend mit Ekaśṛṅga wird seine Ausdehnung in Tausenden von Yojanas bemessen. Dort befinden sich die Länder namens Bhadrāśva, und dort ist auch der Wald Bhadraśāla gelegen.

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Word by Word

• माल्यवतः: of Mālyavat (mountain)
• माल्यवतः: सम्बन्ध (षष्ठी/Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: माल्यवत् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन (Singular), पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine)

• पूर्वपार्श्वे: on the eastern side
• पूर्वपार्श्वे: अधिकरण (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पूर्व + पार्श्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन (Singular), नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter); तत्पुरुष-समास (determinative): पूर्वं पार्श्वम्

• पूर्वगण्डिका: (a region) named Pūrvagaṇḍikā
• पूर्वगण्डिका: कर्ता (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पूर्व + गण्डिका (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular), स्त्रीलिङ्ग (Feminine); कर्मधारय-समास: पूर्वा गण्डिका

• एकशृङ्गात्: from (Mount) Ekaśṛṅga
• एकशृङ्गात्: अपादान (Ablative/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: एक + शृङ्ग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पञ्चमी (5th/Ablative), एकवचन (Singular), नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter); कर्मधारय-समास: एकं शृङ्गम्

• योजनसहस्राणि: thousands of yojanas
• योजनसहस्राणि: कर्ता (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: योजन + सहस्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन (Plural), नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter); तत्पुरुष-समास: योजनानां सहस्राणि

• मानतः: in measure / by measurement
• मानतः: विशेषण (Adverbial qualifier/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: मानतस् (अव्यय/प्रातिपदिक-निबद्ध)
• Form: अव्यय (indeclinable), तद्धित-निबद्ध अव्यय; अर्थे: परिमाणे (in the sense of measure)

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: अधिकरण (Locative sense/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (indeclinable), देशवाचक-अव्यय (locative adverb)

• च: and
• च: समुच्चय (Conjunctive)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, समुच्चय (conjunction)

• भद्राश्वाः: Bhadrāśvas (people)
• भद्राश्वाः: कर्ता (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भद्राश्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन (Plural), पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine)

• नाम: named / called
• नाम: विशेषण (Appositive marker)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: नाम (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, नामार्थक-निपात (particle indicating name)

• जनपदाः: countries/regions
• जनपदाः: कर्ता (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: जनपद (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन (Plural), पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine)

• भद्रशालवनम्: the Bhadrashāla forest
• भद्रशालवनम्: कर्ता (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भद्र + शाल + वन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular), नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter); तत्पुरुष-समास (determinative): भद्राः शालाः यस्मिन् तत् वनम् / or भद्रशालानां वनम्

• च: and
• च: समुच्चय (Conjunctive)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, समुच्चय (conjunction)

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: अधिकरण (Locative sense/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, देशवाचक-अव्यय (locative adverb)

• व्यवस्थितम्: situated / established
• व्यवस्थितम्: विशेषण (Predicate adjective)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वि + अव + स्था (धातु) + क्त (प्रत्यय)
• Form: कृदन्त (past passive participle/क्त), प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular), नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter); अर्थ: स्थितम्/स्थित (placed, situated)

Speaker

Varāha

Tags

• Classical Literature
• Purāṇic Cosmography
• Ancient Geography
• Environmental Toponyms

FAQs

What is the historical significance of this verse?

It preserves a Purāṇic catalogue of named regions, forests, and measurements, reflecting how early Sanskrit texts organized cosmography and cultural geography through toponyms.

Which geographic location is identified?

Bhadrāśva (a Purāṇic janapada/region) and the Bhadraśāla forest are named; these are typically treated as mytho-geographic locales within Jambūdvīpa traditions rather than securely mapped modern sites.

What is the primary ethical instruction?

The verse is primarily descriptive; its implicit philosophical instruction is the recognition and careful naming of landscapes (mountains, forests, regions) as part of cultural memory and stewardship.