Varaha Purana 21.48: Adhyaya 21, Shloka 48
The Disruption of Dakṣa’s Sacrifice, the Hari-Hara Conflict, and the Establishment of Rudra’s Sacrificial Share
Pūrva Bhāga · Dharma–nīti (ethical reflection within the Varāha–Pṛthivī dialogue frame)
क्व यात पौरुषं त्यक्त्वा दर्पं माहात्म्यमेव च । व्यवसायं कुलं भूतिṃ कथं न स्मर्यते द्रुतम् ॥ २१.४९ ॥
kva yāta pauruṣaṃ tyaktvā darpaṃ māhātmyam eva ca | vyavasāyaṃ kulaṃ bhūtiṃ kathaṃ na smaryate drutam || 21.49 ||
kva yAta pauruShaM tyaktvA darpaM mAhAtmyameva cha | vyavasAyaM kulaM bhUtiM kathaM na smaryate drutam || 21.49 ||
Having abandoned manly effort, pride, and even one’s own greatness, where have you gone? How is it that your enterprise, lineage, and prosperity are not quickly remembered?
Sandhi Notes
- माहात्म्यम् + एव → माहात्म्यमेव
Varāha
Observer
Why has valor and remembrance of one’s duty—enterprise, lineage-responsibility, and prosperity—been abandoned in sudden fear?
Human/divine excellence is validated by timely effort and remembrance of dharma; forgetting one’s ‘kula’ and ‘vyavasāya’ is moral collapse.
In crisis, recall your responsibilities (family/community role), recommit to disciplined action, and avoid paralysis born of fear.
Do not forsake puruṣakāra (initiative) and svadharma under fear; remember kula-dharma and uphold collective honor through steadfast effort.
Steadfastness preserves fame and prosperity; cowardice leads to loss of reputation, cohesion, and fortune.
21.21.48 (Vişṇu addresses forces); 21.21.50 (example of Brahmā’s fear/obeisance)
FAQs
It reflects a common Purāṇic ethical register that evaluates social standing (kula), prosperity (bhūti), and personal agency (pauruṣa) as unstable, thus situating moral reflection within broader Sanskrit discourse on reputation and impermanence.
No geographic location is named in this verse; it functions as a rhetorical-ethical statement rather than a site-specific description.
The verse foregrounds the fragility of pride and worldly markers (greatness, lineage, prosperity), prompting reflection on how quickly such qualities vanish and how unreliable they are as foundations for lasting remembrance.
Ask anything about this verse
Answers come straight from the texts, with the shlokas they draw on. Ask in your own words.
A free sign-in with Google or Apple 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.
