Varaha Purana 13.23: Adhyaya 13, Shloka 23

The Genealogy of the Pitṛs and the Determination of Śrāddha Times

Pūrva Bhāga · Cosmology and Cyclical Time (Yuga Doctrine)

Devanagari script

एते वै लोकविभ्रष्टा लोकान् प्राप्य सनातनान् । पुनर्युगशतान्तेषु जायन्ते ब्रह्मवादिनः ॥ १३.२३ ॥

Recitation with translationVaraha Purana 13.23

Transliteration

ete vai lokavibhraṣṭā lokān prāpya sanātanān | punaryugaśatānteṣu jāyante brahmavādinaḥ || 13.23 ||

ITRANS transliteration

Translation

આ લોકો પોતાના પૂર્વ લોકોથી વિભ્રષ્ટ થઈ સનાતન લોકોને પ્રાપ્ત કરે છે; અને ફરી યુગોના સૈકડાં ચક્રોના અંતે બ્રહ્મવાદી, એટલે બ્રહ્મવિદ્યાના ઉપદેશક, રૂપે જન્મ લે છે.

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Word by Word

• एते: these
• Type: Noun
• Form: प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/प्रथमा), बहुवचन (Plural), पुल्लिङ्ग (Masculine)
• Role: कर्ता (Karta/Subject)
• Root: एतद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)

• वै: indeed
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: निपात (emphatic particle)
• Role: सम्बन्ध (Particle)
• Root: वै (अव्यय)

• लोक-विभ्रष्टाः: fallen from the worlds
• Type: Adjective
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (लोकात् विभ्रष्टाः/‘fallen from the worlds’), प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन, पुल्लिङ्ग
• Role: विशेषण (Adjective of ‘एते’)
• Root: लोक (प्रातिपदिक) + विभ्रष्ट (भ्रंश्/भ्रश् धातु से कृदन्त)

• लोकान्: worlds
• Type: Noun
• Form: द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/द्वितीया), बहुवचन (Plural), पुल्लिङ्ग (Masculine)
• Role: कर्म (Karma/Object)
• Root: लोक (प्रातिपदिक)

• प्राप्य: having attained
• Type: Verb
• Form: क्त्वा-प्रत्ययान्त अव्ययकृदन्त (Gerund/Absolutive), ‘having attained’
• Role: पूर्वकाल-क्रिया (Prior action)
• Root: प्र-आप् (धातु)

• सनातनान्: eternal
• Type: Adjective
• Form: द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/द्वितीया), बहुवचन, पुल्लिङ्ग; ‘लोकान्’ इत्यस्य विशेषण
• Role: विशेषण (Adjective of ‘लोकान्’)
• Root: सनातन (प्रातिपदिक)

• पुनः: again
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्यय (adverb: again)
• Role: सम्बन्ध (Adverbial)
• Root: पुनः (अव्यय)

• युग-शत-अन्तेषु: at the ends of hundreds of yugas
• Type: Noun
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (युगशतानाम् अन्तेषु), सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative/सप्तमी), बहुवचन, पुल्लिङ्ग
• Role: अधिकरण (Adhikaraṇa/Time-location)
• Root: युग (प्रातिपदिक) + शत (प्रातिपदिक) + अन्त (प्रातिपदिक)

• जायन्ते: are born
• Type: Verb
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present/लट्), प्रथम-पुरुष, बहुवचन, आत्मनेपद; भावे/कर्मणि-प्रायः ‘are born’
• Role: क्रिया (Verb)
• Root: जन् (धातु)

• ब्रह्म-वादिनः: expounders of Brahman
• Type: Noun
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (ब्रह्मणः वादिनः/‘speakers of Brahman’), प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन, पुल्लिङ्ग
• Role: कर्ता (Karta/Subject complement of ‘जायन्ते’)
• Root: ब्रह्मन् (प्रातिपदिक) + वादिन् (प्रातिपदिक)

Sandhi Notes

• पुनर्युगशतान्तेषु → पुनः युगशतान्तेषु

Speaker and setting

Shanta and Adbhuta rasaSetting: Cosmological planes

Speaker

Varāha

Bhu Devi and Varaha

In this verse

Varaha teaches her

Her state of mind

Curious, seeking clarity on karmic destiny across yuga-cycles

What she asks

How do beings who have fallen from prior attainments still reach eternal worlds, and why do they reappear after vast cycles as brahma-teachers?

The teaching

Kind of teaching

Soteriology / karma-time doctrine

Subjects

CosmologyCyclical TimeKarma and RebirthSoteriology

Core idea

Even after a ‘fall’ from a prior station, latent saṃskāras can mature into access to higher, enduring realms; yet cosmic cycles can draw such beings back into embodiment as teachers when dharma needs re-articulation.

In practice

Treat spiritual learning as cumulative across lives; cultivate śravaṇa–manana so that, when memory/insight returns, it can ripen into guidance for others.

Cross references

Tags

• Classical Literature
• Purāṇic Cosmology
• Vaiṣṇavism
• Sanskrit Philology

FAQs

What is the historical significance of this verse?

It reflects a common Purāṇic model of cyclical cosmology, where vast yuga-based timeframes structure narratives of fall, attainment of higher realms, and re-emergence of learned teachers across cosmic cycles.

Which geographic location is identified?

No specific geographic or pilgrimage location is named in this verse; it is framed in cosmological terms (lokas/worlds) rather than terrestrial geography.

What is the primary ethical instruction?

The verse emphasizes long-term moral causality and the continuity of learning: beings may undergo decline and restoration across cosmic time, ultimately reappearing as transmitters of sacred knowledge, underscoring the value placed on disciplined understanding and teaching.