Varaha Purana 35.2: Adhyaya 35, Shloka 2

The Account of Soma’s Decline and Restoration, and the Paurṇamāsī Observance

Devanagari script

सप्तविंशति याः कन्या दाक्षायण्यः प्रकीर्तिताः । सोमपत्‍न्योऽतिमन्तव्यास्तासां श्रेष्ठा तु रोहिणी ॥ ३५.२ ॥

Recitation with translationVaraha Purana 35.2

Transliteration

saptaviṁśati yāḥ kanyā dākṣāyaṇyaḥ prakīrtitāḥ | somapatnyo 'timantavyās tāsāṁ śreṣṭhā tu rohiṇī || 35.2 ||

Translation

Les vingt-sept jeunes filles célébrées comme filles de Dakṣa doivent être comprises comme les épouses de Soma (la Lune) ; parmi elles, Rohiṇī est tenue pour la plus éminente.

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Word by Word

• सप्तविंशति: twenty-seven
• सप्तविंशति: विशेषण (Viśeṣaṇa/Adjective of कन्याः)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सप्तविंशति (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: संख्यावाचक (numeral), अव्ययवत् प्रयोग (indeclinable-like numeral)

• याः: who / which
• याः: कर्ता (Kartā/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (feminine), प्रथमा विभक्ति (nominative/1st), बहुवचन (plural)

• कन्याः: daughters / maidens
• कन्याः: कर्ता (Kartā/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कन्या (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (feminine), प्रथमा विभक्ति (nominative/1st), बहुवचन (plural)

• दाक्षायण्यः: daughters of Dakṣa
• दाक्षायण्यः: विशेषण (Viśeṣaṇa/Adjective of कन्याः)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: दाक्षायणी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (feminine), प्रथमा विभक्ति (nominative/1st), बहुवचन (plural)

• प्रकीर्तिताः: are proclaimed / are mentioned
• प्रकीर्तिताः: कर्तृ-विशेषण (Predicate adjective of कन्याः)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: प्रकीर्तित (कृदन्त, प्र+कीर्त् धातु)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (past passive participle), स्त्रीलिङ्ग (feminine), प्रथमा विभक्ति (nominative/1st), बहुवचन (plural)

• सोम-पत्न्यः: wives of Soma
• सोम-पत्न्यः: समानााधिकरण (Apposition to कन्याः)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सोम (प्रातिपदिक) + पत्नी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुषसमास (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: सोमस्य पत्न्यः), स्त्रीलिङ्ग (feminine), प्रथमा विभक्ति (nominative/1st), बहुवचन (plural)

• अति-मन्तव्याः: to be highly regarded
• अति-मन्तव्याः: कर्तृ-विशेषण (Predicate adjective of सोमपत्‍न्यः)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अति (उपसर्ग/अव्यय) + मन्तव्य (कृदन्त, मन् धातु)
• Form: अव्ययीभावसमास (अति + मन्तव्य), कर्तव्यता-वाचक कृदन्त (gerundive), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; ‘to be greatly considered/esteemed’

• तासाम्: of them
• तासाम्: सम्बन्ध (Sambandha/Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (feminine), षष्ठी विभक्ति (genitive/6th), बहुवचन (plural)

• श्रेष्ठा: the best
• श्रेष्ठा: कर्तृ-विशेषण (Predicate adjective; subject rohiṇī)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: श्रेष्ठ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (feminine), प्रथमा विभक्ति (nominative/1st), एकवचन (singular)

• तु: indeed / but
• तु: सम्बन्धसूचक (Discourse particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (निपात/particle): contrast/emphasis

• रोहिणी: Rohiṇī
• रोहिणी: कर्ता (Kartā/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: रोहिणी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (feminine), प्रथमा विभक्ति (nominative/1st), एकवचन (singular)

Speaker

Varāha (default, speaker not explicit in excerpt)

Tags

• Classical Literature
• Purāṇic Cosmology
• Sanskrit Studies
• Vaishnavism

FAQs

What is the historical significance of this verse?

It reflects a common Purāṇic synthesis of genealogy and astral taxonomy, identifying the 27 nakṣatras as Dakṣa’s daughters and as Soma’s consorts—an influential framework for later calendrical and astronomical traditions in South Asia.

Which geographic location is identified?

No geographic location is named in this verse; the content is primarily cosmological/astral, focused on Soma and the personified nakṣatras.

What is the primary ethical instruction?

The verse is descriptive rather than prescriptive; its main function is classificatory—establishing a hierarchy among the nakṣatras by naming Rohiṇī as foremost.