Varaha Purana 137.121: Adhyaya 137, Shloka 121

The Tale of the Vulture and the She-Jackal: The Māhātmya of the Saukarava Sacred Field

Uttara Bhāga · Tīrtha-māhātmya (Soma-tīrtha narrative)

Devanagari script

अष्टमेन तु भक्तेन मम कर्मविधौ स्थितः ॥ फलं तस्य प्रवक्ष्यामि सोमतीर्थे नरस्य यत ॥

Recitation with translationVaraha Purana 137.121

Transliteration

aṣṭamena tu bhaktena mama karma-vidhau sthitaḥ || phalaṁ tasya pravakṣyāmi soma-tīrthe narasya yat ||

ITRANS transliteration

Translation

जो आठवें नंबर का व्रत करता है और मेरे बताए हुए तरीके पर चलता है, मैं उसको बताता हूँ सोम तीर्थ में उसे क्या फल मिलेगा।

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Word by Word

• अष्टमेन: with the eighth (devotion) / by the eighth
• Type: Adjective
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3), एकवचन; ordinal used adjectivally (with ‘भक्तेन’)
• Role: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Root: अष्टम (प्रातिपदिक)

• तु: indeed
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: अव्यय (particle; emphasis)
• Role: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/particle)
• Root: तु (अव्यय)

• भक्तेन: by devotion / by a devotee
• Type: Noun
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3), एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त used substantively: “devotee/devotion” (instrumental)
• Role: Karana (करण)
• Root: भक्त (भज् धातु, क्त)

• मम: my
• Type: Noun
• Form: षष्ठी (6), एकवचन
• Role: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Genitive)
• Root: अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)

• कर्मविधौ: in the rite/procedure of my worship
• Type: Noun
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7), एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः—“कर्मणः विधिः” (rule/rite of action)
• Role: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Root: कर्म (प्रातिपदिक) + विधि (प्रातिपदिक)

• स्थितः: being established/steadfast
• Type: Adjective
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (PPP) used predicatively
• Role: Karta (कर्ता)
• Root: स्था (धातु) + क्त (कृत्)

• फलम्: fruit, result
• Type: Noun
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन
• Role: Karma (कर्म)
• Root: फल (प्रातिपदिक)

• तस्य: of him/that
• Type: Noun
• Form: षष्ठी (6), एकवचन
• Role: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Genitive)
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)

• प्रवक्ष्यामि: I shall declare
• Type: Verb
• Form: लृट्-लकार (Simple Future), परस्मैपद, उत्तमपुरुष, एकवचन
• Role: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Root: प्र-वच् (धातु)

• सोमतीर्थे: at Soma-tīrtha
• Type: Noun
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7), एकवचन
• Role: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Root: सोम (प्रातिपदिक) + तीर्थ (प्रातिपदिक)

• नरस्य: of a man
• Type: Noun
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6), एकवचन
• Role: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Genitive)
• Root: नर (प्रातिपदिक)

• यत्: which (result)
• Type: Noun
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; relative pronoun referring to ‘फलम्’
• Role: Karma (कर्म)
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)

Sandhi Notes

• कर्म-विधौ → कर्मविधौ (तत्पुरुष)
• सोम-तीर्थे → सोमतीर्थे (तत्पुरुष)

Speaker and setting

Karuna and Shanta rasa

Speaker

Varāha (instructor)

Bhu Devi and Varaha

In this verse

Varaha teaches her

Her state of mind

Afflicted; head pressed by discomfort; seeking relief

What she asks

Which doṣa (vāyu/vāta, kapha, pitta, śoṇita/blood) is causing the head pain, and what is the underlying cause of the affliction?

The teaching

Kind of teaching

Integrative dharma of care (dayā) with embodied knowledge

Subjects

Ritual PracticeHeritage SitesEthics

Core idea

Divine instruction includes compassionate attention to embodied suffering; discerning causes (doṣa-vicāra) precedes remedy—right knowledge is a form of protection.

In practice

Before prescribing vows/rites or remedies, diagnose the condition (physical/mental/ethical); respond with compassion and appropriate corrective action.

The Varaha avatara

Aspect

Dialogue

With the Earth

Varāha addresses Bhu-devī as ‘bhadre’ and diagnostically inquires into the cause of her head affliction using doṣa categories (vāta, kapha, pitta, śoṇita), showing healer-like concern.

Cross references

Tags

• Classical Literature
• Vaiṣṇavism
• Tīrtha-māhātmya
• Devotional Discipline

FAQs

What is the historical significance of this verse?

It reflects a structured, enumerative style (e.g., ‘eighth’) used in Sanskrit instructional literature to organize ritual/ethical observances and their claimed outcomes.

Which geographic location is identified?

Soma-tīrtha is explicitly named as the locus where the stated ‘fruit’ is contextualized.

What is the primary ethical instruction?

It emphasizes disciplined adherence to a prescribed procedure (karma-vidhi) and frames outcomes as tied to consistent practice rather than isolated acts.