Varaha Purana 9.5: Adhyaya 9, Shloka 5
The Sequence of Creation, the Emergence of the Praṇava, and the Fish Incarnation’s Retrieval of the Vedas
ॐ इत्येकाक्षरीभूता ससर्जेमां महीं तदा । भूः ससर्ज भुवं सोऽपि स्वः ससर्ज ततो महः ॥ ९.५ ॥
om ity ekākṣarībhūtā sasarjemāṃ mahīṃ tadā | bhūḥ sasarja bhuvaṃ so 'pi svaḥ sasarja tato mahaḥ || 9.5 ||
Dann, zum einsilbigen Laut „Om“ geworden, erschuf sie diese Erde. Sie erschuf „Bhūḥ“ und auch „Bhuvaḥ“; danach erschuf sie „Svaḥ“ und sodann „Mahaḥ“.
Varāha (default narrator/instructor voice for this fragment)
Varaha Avatara Context: {"is_varaha_focus":false}
Bhu Devi Dialogue: {"is_dialogue":false,"speaker_role":"instructor"}
Mathura Mandala: {"is_mathura_related":false}
Dharma Shastra: {"has_dharma_rule":false}
Vrata Mahatmya: {"has_vrata":false}
Cosmic Boar Symbolism: {"has_symbolism":true,"symbolic_interpretation":"Praṇava (Oṃ) is presented as the single-syllable causal potency from which the earth and the vyāhṛti-lokas unfold (Bhūḥ, Bhuvaḥ, Svaḥ, Mahaḥ), aligning creation with mantra-structure and Vedic cosmography.","yajna_varaha_imagery":"Vyāhṛtis are yajña-speech pillars: Bhūḥ/Bhuvaḥ/Svaḥ/Mahaḥ as ritual utterances that ‘build’ the worlds; Oṃ as the seed-sound preceding and empowering the sacrificial cosmos.","vedantic_connection":"Oṃ as brahman-sign (praṇava) generating nāma-rūpa; echoes Māṇḍūkya’s framing of Oṃ as totality, with worlds as graded manifestations within consciousness."}
Philosophical Teaching: {"has_teaching":true,"teaching_type":"mantra-based cosmology","core_concept":"Sound (Oṃ) is causal; the worlds are structured as graded expansions of sacred utterance.","practical_application":"Integrate Oṃ and vyāhṛti recitation with contemplation: treat mantra as a method to align microcosm (mind-breath) with macrocosm (lokas)."}
Subject Matter: ["Cosmology","Philosophical Instruction","Sacred Sound (Om)"]
Primary Rasa: adbhuta
Secondary Rasa: śānta
Type: cosmic realms
Related Themes: Varāha Purāṇa 9.9.6 (threading of the order); Varāha Purāṇa 9.9.7 (praṇava-born universe and void)
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"From a central Oṃ-symbol, concentric realms unfold: Earth first, then layered spheres labeled Bhūḥ, Bhuvaḥ, Svaḥ, Mahaḥ, like expanding mandalas of sound.","item_prompts":["large luminous ‘ॐ’ at center","concentric circles/spheres","labels ‘भूः भुवः स्वः महः’","emerging earth-disc with mountains/oceans"],"kerala_mural_prompt":"Mandala-like cosmos with central Oṃ in gold; four expanding rings with vyāhṛti labels; stylized earth with green/blue bands; strong outlines and flat color fields.","tanjore_prompt":"Central Oṃ in raised gold; embossed concentric lokas; jewel-like earth; ornate border resembling temple prabhāmaṇḍala.","mysore_prompt":"Subtle concentric glow around Oṃ; refined calligraphy for vyāhṛtis; softly rendered earth sphere.","pahari_prompt":"Delicate circular cosmos with a calligraphic Oṃ; pastel rings; small earth vignette; lyrical spacing and minimal ornament."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"solemn-mantric","suggested_raga":"Malkauns","pace":"measured","voice_tone":"deep, resonant, mantra-like"}
FAQs
It preserves a Purāṇic cosmogonic formula linking creation to the praṇava (“Om”) and enumerating the early strata of the traditional world-system (Bhūḥ, Bhuvaḥ, Svaḥ, Mahaḥ), a scheme also widely attested in Vedic and post-Vedic literature.
No specific terrestrial location is named here; the verse uses cosmological ‘world’ designations (Bhūḥ, Bhuvaḥ, Svaḥ, Mahaḥ) rather than a place identifiable on historical geography.
The verse primarily conveys a philosophical instruction rather than a direct moral rule: it frames the cosmos as originating in ordered stages and associates creative power with disciplined, meaningful speech (the single-syllable “Om”).
Ask anything about this verse
Answers come straight from the texts, with the shlokas they draw on. Ask in your own words.
A free Google sign-in keeps your chat saved across web and the app.
Read Varaha Purana in the Vedapath app
Scan the QR code to open this directly in the app, with word-by-word meanings, Sanskrit recitation where available, and more.