Varaha Purana 213.23: Adhyaya 213, Shloka 23
The Glory of Gokarṇeśvara: Nandin’s Austerities and Śiva’s Boons
सर्वर्तुकवनोद्यानें पुष्पाकरसुशोभिते ।। यज्ञकिम्पुरुषावासे गुह्यकानामथाश्रये
sarvartukavanodyāne puṣpākarasuśobhite || yajñakimpuruṣāvāse guhyakānām athāśraye
वो बगीचा ऐसे है जहाँ हर मौसम फूल खिलते हैं। फूल इतने हैं कि देखने में अच्छा लगता है। यहाँ यज्ञ करने वाले लोग रहते हैं। किम्पुरुष और गुह्यक भी यहीं रहते हैं।
Varāha (default narrative frame)
The ‘all-seasons grove’ functions as a Purāṇic cosmographic emblem of an ever-fertile sacred ecology where yajña (cosmic order/ritual) is naturally present; the non-human divine tribes (Kimpuruṣas, Guhyakas) mark liminal guardianship of holy space.
Not explicit Varāha-body mapping; instead, the landscape itself is ‘yajña-saturated’: flowers as offerings, the grove as altar-like enclosure, guardian-beings as ritual protectors.
Sacred geography as a manifestation of ṛta/dharma: the cosmos is intelligible as a living sacrificial field where purity of place supports purity of mind (adhyātma-yajña).
Holy places are not merely human constructions; they are living ecologies sustained by unseen orders (yajña, guardian beings) and thus demand reverent approach.
Approach tīrthas/forests with restraint (non-harm, cleanliness, quietude), treating the environment as part of worship rather than a resource to exploit.
Varāha Purāṇa 213.26–213.29 (continuation describing the mountain/forest and resident deity)
FAQs
It exemplifies how Purāṇic texts combine ecological description with mythic population markers (Kimpuruṣas, Guhyakas) to encode sacred geography and cultural memory.
A specific named site is not stated in this verse; it describes a typified sacred grove/park associated with non-human guardians and mythic communities.
The verse implicitly promotes respect toward protected natural spaces (groves, flower-rich gardens) framed as shared habitats and heritage locales.
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