Varaha Purana 172.4 — Adhyaya 172, Shloka 4

The Harm of Destroying a Grove and the Merit of Tree-Planting as Pūrta-Dharma

Devanagari script

विवर्णं वदना दीनाः भग्नालङ्कारवाससः ॥ हीनाङ्गा लुञ्चितशिरः केशपक्ष्मनखादयः ॥

Transliteration

vivarṇaṃ vadanā dīnā bhagnālaṅkāravāsasaḥ || hīnāṅgā luñcitaśiraḥ keśapakṣmanakhādayaḥ ||

Translation

Their faces were pallid; they were wretched, with ornaments and garments in disarray; their limbs were diminished, their heads as if torn—hair, eyelashes, nails, and the like disturbed.

Word by Word

• vivarṇam: discolored/pale
• vivarṇam: Visheshana (विशेषण/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vi-varṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; क्रियाविशेषणवत्/भावे (describing appearance: ‘discolored’)

• vadanāḥ: (with) faces
• vadanāḥ: Karta (कर्ता/Subject; descriptive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vadana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; (स्त्रीवाचक-समूहः; ‘faces’/‘face-bearing ones’)

• dīnāḥ: wretched/dejected
• dīnāḥ: Visheshana (विशेषण/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: dīna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; विशेषणम् (qualifying devyaḥ understood)

• bhagna-alaṅkāra-vāsasaḥ: with broken ornaments and garments
• bhagna-alaṅkāra-vāsasaḥ: Visheshana (विशेषण/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: bhagna (कृदन्त) + alaṅkāra + vāsas (प्रातिपदिक; द्वन्द्व-तत्पुरुष-संकरः)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; ‘भग्नौ अलङ्कारौ च वासांसि च यस्याः/यासाम्’ इत्यर्थे बहुव्रीह्यर्थक-विशेषणम्; पाठानुसार रूपम् -asaḥ

• hīna-aṅgāḥ: maimed/with limbs diminished
• hīna-aṅgāḥ: Visheshana (विशेषण/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: hīna + aṅga (प्रातिपदिक; बहुव्रीहि/तत्पुरुषार्थ)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; ‘यासाम् अङ्गानि हीनानि’

• luñcita-śiraḥ: with torn/plucked heads (hair)
• luñcita-śiraḥ: Visheshana (विशेषण/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: luñcita (कृदन्त; √luñc) + śiras (प्रातिपदिक; बहुव्रीहि)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; ‘यासां शिरः लुञ्चितम्’

• keśa-pakṣma-nakha-ādayaḥ: hair, eyelashes, nails, etc.
• keśa-pakṣma-nakha-ādayaḥ: Karta (कर्ता/Subject; appositional list)
• Type: Noun
• Root: keśa + pakṣman + nakha + ādi (प्रातिपदिक; द्वन्द्व-समास)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; ‘hair, eyelashes, nails, etc.’ (members/parts)

Speaker

Varāha

Varaha Avatara Context

Varaha Avatara Context: {"is_varaha_focus":false,"aspect_highlighted":"None","boar_form_detail":"None","earth_interaction":"None"}

Bhu Devi Dialogue

Bhu Devi Dialogue: {"is_dialogue":false,"speaker_role":"instructor","bhu_devi_state":"None","key_question":"None"}

Mathura Mandala

Mathura Mandala: {"is_mathura_related":false,"specific_site":"None","parikrama_context":"None","krishna_connection":"None"}

Dharma Shastra

Dharma Shastra: {"has_dharma_rule":false,"topic":"None","instruction_summary":"None","karmic_consequence":"None"}

Vrata Mahatmya

Vrata Mahatmya: {"has_vrata":false,"vrata_name":"None","tithi_month":"None","promised_fruit":"None"}

Cosmic Boar Symbolism

Cosmic Boar Symbolism: {"has_symbolism":false,"symbolic_interpretation":"None","yajna_varaha_imagery":"None","vedantic_connection":"None"}

Philosophical Teaching

Philosophical Teaching: {"has_teaching":true,"teaching_type":"anitya-and-duhkha (contextual)","core_concept":"रूपालङ्कार-सम्पत् क्षणभङ्गुरा; देहः दुःख-आश्रयः","practical_application":"वैराग्य-भावना; बाह्य-शोभायां न स्थैर्य-बुद्धिः; करुणा-प्रवृत्तिः पीडितेषु"}

Subject Matter

Subject Matter: ["Narrative Literature","Suffering","Embodied Description"]

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: करुण

Secondary Rasa: बीभत्स

Geographic Context

Type: अन्तःपुर/निवास-परिसरः (जहाँ दर्शनं जातम्)

Cross References

Related Themes: Varaha Purana 172.5 (व्रण-रुधिर-वर्णनम्)

Visual Art Cues

Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"देव्यः विवर्ण-वदनाः, दीनाः; अलङ्कार-वस्त्राणि भग्न-विक्षिप्तानि; अङ्ग-क्षयः, शिरः-केश-पक्ष्म-नखादि विकृतं—दुःख-पराकाष्ठा।","item_prompts":["पल्लवित-शोक-नेत्र","फटे वस्त्र","टूटे कङ्कण/हार","बिखरे केश","क्षीण देह-रेखा","म्लान वर्ण-योजना"],"kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural: stylized yet intense pallor, broken ornaments rendered with clear contour, muted reds/browns, expressive eyes, narrative emphasis on downfall.","tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore: reduced gold usage to show loss, cracked jewelry motifs, strong frontal figures, textured background to suggest distress.","mysore_prompt":"Mysore: fine detailing of disarrayed textiles and hair, gentle but sorrowful faces, controlled realism within classical idiom.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari: spare composition, pale figures with disheveled hair, minimal props, emotional immediacy through eyes and posture."}

Audio Atmosphere

Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"śoka-gambhīra","suggested_raga":"Todi","pace":"vilambita","voice_tone":"low, heavy, compassionate"}

Tags

• Classical Literature
• Purāṇic Narrative
• Sanskrit Descriptive Style
• Cultural Heritage

FAQs

What is the historical significance of this verse?

It exemplifies Purāṇic descriptive conventions for distress—bodily and sartorial disorder signaling a narrative crisis.

Which geographic location is identified?

No geographic site is named in this verse.

What is the primary ethical instruction?

The verse is primarily descriptive; ethically, it functions to evoke compassion and prompt inquiry into causes of suffering.