Varaha Purana 14.53: Adhyaya 14, Shloka 53

Ritual Procedure for Śrāddha: Sequence, Eligibility, and Offerings to Ancestors

Pūrva Bhāga · Pr̥thivī–Varāha Saṃvāda (Speaker Cue)

Devanagari script

धरण्युवाच ॥

Recitation with translationVaraha Purana 14.53

Transliteration

dharaṇy uvāca ||

ITRANS transliteration

Translation

धरणी ने कहा। वो धरती थी।

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Word by Word

• dharaṇī: Earth (goddess)
• Type: Noun
• Form: Feminine (स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular (एकवचन)
• Role: Karta (कर्ता)
• Root: dharaṇī (प्रातिपदिक)

• uvāca: said
• Type: Verb
• Form: Perfect (लिट्), 3rd person (प्रथमपुरुष), Singular (एकवचन), Parasmaipada (परस्मैपद)
• Role: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Root: vac (धातु)

Sandhi Notes

• dharaṇy uvāca = dharaṇī + uvāca (ī + u → y u)

Speaker and setting

Shanta and Adbhuta rasaSetting: Cosmological personification

Speaker

Pṛthivī (Dharaṇī)

Bhu Devi and Varaha

In this verse

She asks

Her state of mind

Attentive and ready to inquire; personified Earth entering a formal dialogue frame

What she asks

It introduces Dharaṇī as the speaking voice who will pose cosmological/dharmic questions.

The teaching

Path

Hermeneutic/frame Setting

Subjects

Dialogue FrameCosmology (Earth personified)

Core idea

Śruti-smṛti style transmission through dialogue: inquiry (praśna) as the gateway to knowledge.

In practice

Approach dharma and cosmology through disciplined questioning and attentive listening to the teacher’s reply.

Cross references

Tags

• Classical Literature
• Vaishnavism
• Purāṇic Dialogue
• Cosmological Personification

FAQs

What is the historical significance of this verse?

Speaker markers (uvāca) are key structural devices in Purāṇic composition, preserving dialogic framing for oral/recitational transmission.

Which geographic location is identified?

None; it is a speaker cue rather than a descriptive verse.

What is the primary ethical instruction?

No direct instruction; it signals a shift to Earth’s perspective within the dialogue.