Varaha Purana 205.5: Adhyaya 205, Shloka 5
Description of the Proclamation of Auspicious and Inauspicious Karmic Results
दारत्यागी त्वधर्मिष्ठः पुत्रपौत्रविवर्जितः ॥ क्षिप्तं वै रौरवे ह्येनं क्षपयन्तु महौजसः ॥
dāra-tyāgī tv adharmiṣṭhaḥ putra-pautra-vivarjitaḥ | kṣiptaṃ vai raurave hy enaṃ kṣapayantu mahaujasaḥ ||
પત્નીનો ત્યાગ કરનાર, અત્યંત અધર્મી, પુત્ર-પૌત્રથી વંચિત—આને રૌરવ નરકમાં ફેંકવામાં આવ્યો છે; મહાબળવાન દૂતોએ તેને ત્યાં દંડભોગથી ક્ષીણ કરવો।
Ṛṣiputra (reporting adjudicatory language; agents implied)
Varaha Avatara Context: {"is_varaha_focus":false}
Bhu Devi Dialogue: {"is_dialogue":false}
Mathura Mandala: {"is_mathura_related":false}
Dharma Shastra: {"has_dharma_rule":true,"instruction_summary":"Wife-abandonment (dāra-tyāga) is condemned as adharma and is punished by being cast into the Raurava hell; it also results in loss of progeny/lineage continuity.","karmic_consequence":"Breaker: naraka (Raurava) and deprivation of sons/grandsons; Follower (protector of marital dharma): social stability, lineage continuity, and avoidance of severe hells."}
Vrata Mahatmya: {"has_vrata":false}
Cosmic Boar Symbolism: {"has_symbolism":false}
Philosophical Teaching: {"has_teaching":true,"teaching_type":"relational dharma and karmic retribution","core_concept":"Adharma in intimate social bonds (marriage) has heavy karmic weight; betrayal of dependents rebounds as suffering and loss of continuity.","practical_application":"Maintain fidelity and responsibility; if separation is unavoidable, act within dharmic procedures (support, protection, non-cruelty) rather than abandonment."}
Subject Matter: ["Ethics","Social Conduct","Cosmology"]
Primary Rasa: bhayanaka
Secondary Rasa: raudra
Type: specific infernal hell
Related Themes: Varāha Purāṇa: surrounding naraka-kathā and lists of sins leading to specific hells
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A condemned wife-abandoner is dragged and cast into Raurava by powerful agents, emphasizing the severity of the social sin and the infernal penalty.","item_prompts":["yamadūtas (mighty ones) restraining a man","pit of Raurava with flames/serpents/thorns (iconic infernal hazards)","gesture of casting/throwing","Citragupta’s record indicating the crime","dark-red infernal sky"],"kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural: fierce yamadūtas with bold eyes and ornaments; the sinner being hurled toward a flaming pit labeled by motif; high-contrast reds and blacks; strong stylization.","tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore: central dramatic figure-group with embossed flames; gold borders and halos for agents; the pit rendered with textured relief; jewel-toned severity.","mysore_prompt":"Mysore: narrative realism—dynamic movement of casting; detailed musculature of agents; controlled depiction of fire and darkness; moral gravity.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari: compact action scene with stylized flames and rocky pit; expressive gestures; clear storytelling with minimal background clutter."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"stern-judicial","suggested_raga":"Shankarabharanam","pace":"medium","voice_tone":"authoritative, clipped, warning"}
FAQs
It reflects Purāṇic social-ethical norms by linking specific social transgressions to named punitive realms, a common feature of medieval Sanskrit moral literature.
Raurava is a cosmological ‘hell’ designation, not a historical geographic site.
The passage condemns abandonment of one’s spouse and frames it as a serious social and moral breach with severe consequences.
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