Varaha Purana 152.2: Adhyaya 152, Shloka 2

Praise of the Sacred Geography of Mathurā

Uttara Bhāga (traditional classification; chapter-level repository entry) · Mathurā-tīrtha Praśaṃsā (Dialogue Framework: Inquiry by Earth)

Devanagari script

धरन्युवाच ॥ पद्मपत्र विशालाक्ष लोकनाथ जगत्पते ॥ त्वत्प्रसादाच्च देवेश श्रुतं शास्त्रं महौजसम् ॥

Recitation with translationVaraha Purana 152.2

Transliteration

dharaṇy uvāca || padmapatra-viśālākṣa lokanātha jagatpate || tvatprasādāc ca deveśa śrutaṃ śāstraṃ mahaujasam ||

ITRANS transliteration

Translation

La Tierra dijo: Oh de ojos amplios como hojas de loto, Señor del mundo y protector de los seres: por tu gracia, oh Señor de los dioses, he escuchado la poderosa enseñanza del śāstra.

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Word by Word

• dharaṇī: Earth (goddess)
• Type: Noun
• Form: Feminine (स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Nominative (प्रथमा/1), Singular (एकवचन)
• Role: Karta (कर्ता)
• Root: dharaṇī (प्रातिपदिक)

• uvāca: said
• Type: Verb
• Form: Perfect (लिट्), 3rd person (प्रथमपुरुष), Singular (एकवचन), Parasmaipada (परस्मैपद)
• Role: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Root: vac (धातु)

• padma-patra-viśāla-akṣa: O one with large lotus-petal-like eyes
• Type: Noun
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Vocative (सम्बोधन/8), Singular (एकवचन); बहुव्रीहिः: padmapatre iva viśāle akṣī yasya saḥ
• Role: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Root: padma (प्रातिपदिक) + patra (प्रातिपदिक) + viśāla (प्रातिपदिक) + akṣa (प्रातिपदिक)

• lokanātha: O lord of the world
• Type: Noun
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Vocative (सम्बोधन/8), Singular (एकवचन); षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः: lokānāṃ nāthaḥ
• Role: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Root: loka (प्रातिपदिक) + nātha (प्रातिपदिक)

• jagatpate: O lord of the universe
• Type: Noun
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Vocative (सम्बोधन/8), Singular (एकवचन); षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः: jagataḥ patiḥ
• Role: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Root: jagat (प्रातिपदिक) + pati (प्रातिपदिक)

• tvat-prasādāt: from your grace
• Type: Noun
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Ablative (पञ्चमी/5), Singular (एकवचन); षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः: tava prasādaḥ
• Role: Hetu/Apādāna (हेतु/अपादान)
• Root: tvat (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) + prasāda (प्रातिपदिक)

• ca: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: Avyaya (अव्यय), conjunction (समुच्चय)
• Role: Samuccaya (समुच्चय)
• Root: ca (अव्यय)

• deveśa: O lord of the gods
• Type: Noun
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Vocative (सम्बोधन/8), Singular (एकवचन); षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः: devānām īśaḥ
• Role: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Root: deva (प्रातिपदिक) + īśa (प्रातिपदिक)

• śrutam: heard; learned
• Type: Verb
• Form: Past passive participle (क्त/कृत्), Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Nominative (प्रथमा/1), Singular (एकवचन); predicative with śāstram
• Role: Kriyā (क्रियापद/भाव)
• Root: śru (धातु)

• śāstram: treatise; scripture
• Type: Noun
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Nominative (प्रथमा/1), Singular (एकवचन)
• Role: Karta (कर्ता/विषय)
• Root: śāstra (प्रातिपदिक)

• mahā-ojasam: of great power/splendor
• Type: Adjective
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Nominative (प्रथमा/1), Singular (एकवचन); कर्मधारयः: mahad ojaḥ yasya tat; adjective qualifying śāstram
• Role: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + ojas (प्रातिपदिक)

Sandhi Notes

• dharaṇy uvāca = dharaṇī uvāca
• padmapatra-viśālākṣa = padma-patra-viśāla-akṣa (bahuvrīhi)
• tvatprasādāc ca = tvat-prasādāt ca

Speaker and setting

Shanta and Bhakti rasa

Speaker

Pṛthivī (Dharaṇī)

Bhu Devi and Varaha

In this verse

She worships

Her state of mind

Grateful, receptive, intellectually awakened by instruction

What she asks

Implicitly: how śāstra is to be received/validated—through divine grace and the Lord as lokanātha and jagatpati.

The teaching

Kind of teaching

Epistemology of dharma / theological pramāṇa

Subjects

EthicsTextual Authority (Śāstra)Dialogue Literature

Core idea

Śāstra is ‘heard’ and internalized through divine favor; the Lord is the ground of ethical knowledge.

In practice

Approach dharma-texts with humility and devotion; treat learning as grace-enabled, not merely self-achieved.

The Varaha avatara

With the Earth

Bhu-devī addresses the Lord with reverential epithets, attributing her reception of śāstra to his prasāda (grace).

Symbolism of the boar

Cross references

Tags

• Classical Literature
• Purāṇic Studies
• Vaiṣṇavism
• Dharma-Śāstra Discourse

FAQs

What is the historical significance of this verse?

It showcases a Purāṇic pedagogical device: Earth personified as a questioner, allowing sacred geography and ethics to be taught through dialogue.

Which geographic location is identified?

No specific location is named in this verse; it functions as a transition into the forthcoming Mathurā-related tīrtha discussion.

What is the primary ethical instruction?

It highlights learning as a grace-mediated process in the narrative: listening to śāstra is presented as a disciplined reception of authoritative knowledge.