Varaha Purana 140.74: Adhyaya 140, Shloka 74
The Greatness of Kokāmukha (Badarī): Varāha’s Hidden Abode and the Sacred Waters
Pūrva Bhāga · Tīrtha-Māhātmya (Offering arghya after the fish-vision)
तत्र मत्स्यं पुनर्दृष्ट्वा यजमानस्तु सुन्दरि ॥ दद्यादर्घ्यं ततो भद्रे मधुलाजसमन्वितम् ॥
tatra matsyaṃ punar dṛṣṭvā yajamānas tu sundari || dadyād arghyaṃ tato bhadre madhu-lāja-samanvitam ||
tatra matsyaM punardRRiShTvA yajamAnastu sundari || dadyAdarghyaM tato bhadre madhulAjasamanvitam
सुंदर देवी, वहाँ जब दोबारा मछली दिखे, तो यजमान को अर्घ्य देना चाहिए। भद्रा, उसमें शहद और भूना हुआ दलिया मिला के देना।
Sandhi Notes
- पुनर्दृष्ट्वा = पुनः + दृष्ट्वा (ः + द् → र्द्)
Varāha
Curious, receptive to procedural detail
After the auspicious fish is seen again, what offering should the yajamāna perform and with what substances?
Recognition of the divine should culminate in offering—knowledge (jñāna of presence) is completed by worshipful action (arghya).
When auspicious signs arise in pilgrimage/ritual, respond with sanctioned offerings and gratitude rather than mere observation.
Varāha continues instructing Bhū-devī on the immediate ritual response (arghya) after the repeated fish-sighting.
The fish-sign is not passive: it demands yajña-like reciprocity. Arghya with madhu and lājā encodes sweetening/appeasement and offering of ‘grain’ essence—miniaturized yajña within tīrtha practice.
Arghya as ritual ‘oblation’ in water; madhu (honey) as auspicious essence; lājā as grain-offering analogue, translating fire-ritual substances into water-ritual form.
Bhakti expressed as upacāra (formal offering) upon recognition of īśvara-sannidhi; action (karma) becomes devotion when oriented to the divine sign.
On seeing the fish again, the yajamāna should offer arghya mixed with honey and parched grains (lāja).
Proper arghya in response to the divine sign is implied to secure auspiciousness and ritual completeness; neglect implies loss of the indicated merit.
Vaiṣṇava ritual hospitality to the Lord’s presence is implied.
Varāha Purāṇa 140.82 (fish as sign of Nārāyaṇa); Varāha Purāṇa 140.85 (secret fish and liberation)
FAQs
It preserves a concrete ritual recipe (arghya with madhu and lāja), valuable for historians of ritual practice and material offerings in pilgrimage contexts.
The offering is prescribed for the Matsyaśilā/Kokāmukha locale within the Kaushikī river setting.
It emphasizes reciprocal ritual etiquette—responding to a perceived sacred sign with a formal offering—framing devotion as disciplined action rather than coercive belief.
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