Varaha Purana 132.7: Adhyaya 132, Shloka 7
Expiatory Rites for Contact with a Corpse and with a Menstruating Woman
Uttara Bhāga · Purification and Expiation (Prāyaścitta) Framework
अपराधस्य दोषेण विशुद्धिश्च न जायते ॥ प्रायश्चित्तं प्रवक्ष्यामि रागदोषेण दोषितम् ॥
aparādhasya doṣeṇa viśuddhiś ca na jāyate | prāyaścittaṃ pravakṣyāmi rāga-doṣeṇa doṣitam ||
aparAdhasya doSheNa vishuddhishcha na jAyate || prAyashchittaM pravakShyAmi rAgadoSheNa doShitam
जब कोई गलती कर देता है, तो उसका दिल साफ नहीं होता। अब मैं तुम्हे बताता हूँ कैसे उस गलती को माफ़ करवाओ। यह तब काम आता है जब किसी पर किसी चीज़ का चस्का पड़ जाता है।
Sandhi Notes
- विशुद्धिः च → विशुद्धिश्च
- राग-दोषेण is a tatpuruṣa compound
Varāha
Concerned but hopeful; ready for remedial instruction
What restores purity after grave offence, especially when passion (rāga) has tainted the mind?
Wrongdoing leaves a residue that blocks purity; rāga is a root-taint requiring structured corrective practice (prāyaścitta) and inner reform.
Adopt concrete corrective disciplines (confession, restraint, fasting/charity as prescribed later), and address the underlying rāga through self-control and ethical vigilance.
As moral physician, Varāha explains why purity fails after offence and promises to teach prāyaścitta; addresses Bhū Devī as the concerned recipient of remedial dharma.
Varāha as restorer of Earth also restores moral order: prāyaścitta functions like a purificatory yajña that counteracts the stain (mala) produced by rāga-driven acts.
Implicit mapping: offence = impurity (aśauca/mala), prāyaścitta = śodhana rite; the Lord as yajña-puruṣa authorizes purification procedures.
Ethics is rooted in antaḥkaraṇa-śuddhi: passion (rāga) clouds discernment; disciplined expiation and restraint support purification and readiness for higher knowledge.
After offence, purity does not arise automatically; prāyaścitta must be undertaken, especially for those tainted by rāga (passion).
Without expiation, impurity persists and karmic burden continues; with proper prāyaścitta, purification and moral restoration become possible (subject to the gravity of the offence).
Varāha Purāṇa 132 (continuation expected: detailed prāyaścitta procedures following this promise)
FAQs
It shows Purāṇic absorption of Dharma-śāstric categories—offence, impurity, and expiation—often used to systematize moral repair.
No geographic location is referenced.
Moral purification is presented as requiring deliberate corrective practice (prāyaścitta), especially when misconduct stems from passion (rāga).
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