Varaha Purana 2.25: Adhyaya 2, Shloka 25
Cosmogony and the Ninefold Creation: Rudra’s Origin and the Prelude to the Sāvitrī-Veda Narrative
Pūrva Bhāga · Cosmological Narratives (Sṛṣṭi-prakaraṇa)
सृष्टिं चिन्तयतस्तस्य कल्पादिषु यथा पुरा । अबुद्धिपूर्वकस्तस्य प्रादुर्भूतस्तमोमयः ॥ २.२५ ॥
sṛṣṭiṃ cintayatastasya kalpādiṣu yathā purā | abuddhipūrvakas tasya prādurbhūtas tamomayaḥ || 2.25 ||
sRRiShTiM chintayatastasya kalpAdiShu yathA purA | abuddhipUrvakastasya prAdurbhUtastamomayaH || 2.25 ||
जब भगवान दुनिया बनाने के बारे में सोच रहे थे, पहले उनके मन में अंधेरा छा गया। यह वही हुआ जो पहले कल्प में हुआ था। तब उन्हे समझ नहीं आया कि क्या करना है।
Sandhi Notes
- cintayatastasya = cintayataḥ + tasya (visarga sandhi)
- prādurbhūtas = prādurbhūtaḥ (before t-)
- tamomayaḥ = tamo + mayaḥ (o + m-)
Varāha
Curious
How does creation begin from the Supreme’s contemplation, and why does tamas appear prior to manifest discernment?
Before clear discernment, obscuration (tamas) arises as a necessary stage in the unfolding of manifest order.
In inner practice, recognize tamas as a veil preceding clarity; cultivate sattva (through discipline, study, japa) to move from obscuration to discernment.
The verse encodes the guṇa-sequence in cosmogony: before differentiated cognition (buddhi-vyakti), a tamas-dominant veil arises, marking the ‘covering’ phase that makes manifestation possible as a staged unfolding.
Implicit ‘covering’ (āvaraṇa) as the first sacrificial curtain before the rite of creation proceeds.
Bridges Purāṇic theism with Sāṃkhya: the Lord’s will/saṅkalpa initiates prakṛti’s guṇa-disturbance; tamas as the initial obscuration in the causal-to-subtle transition.
Varāha Purāṇa adjacent sarga verses detailing avidyā and the primary creation (mukhya-sarga)
FAQs
It reflects a common Purāṇic cosmogonic motif in which creation is framed as cyclic (kalpa-based) and begins with an undifferentiated or obscured state, aligning with broader classical Indian cosmology and guṇa-based psychological/ontological language.
No geographic location is named in this verse; it is primarily cosmological and conceptual rather than topographical.
Rather than prescribing a social ethic, the verse emphasizes a philosophical principle: discernment (buddhi/clarity) is portrayed as emerging after an initial phase of obscurity (tamas), suggesting the value of cultivating clarity in understanding.
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