Varaha Purana 39.2: Adhyaya 39, Shloka 2
Discrimination of the Three Bodies and the Dharaṇī Vow: A Manual for Dvādaśī Observance
Pūrva Bhāga · Philosophical Anthropology (Śarīra-traya / Doctrine of the Three Bodies)
दुर्वासा उवाच । न द्वे त्रीणि शरीराणि वाच्यं तद्विपरीतकम् । विभोगायतनं चैव त्रिशरीराणि प्राणिनाम् ॥ ३९.२ ॥
durvāsā uvāca | na dve trīṇi śarīrāṇi vācyaṃ tadviparītakam | vibhogāyatanaṃ caiva triśarīrāṇi prāṇinām || 39.2 ||
durvAsA uvAcha | na dve trINi sharIrANi vAchyaM tadviparItakam | vibhogAyatanaM chaiva trisharIrANi prANinAm || 39.2 ||
दुर्वासा ने कहा, नहीं, दो या तीन शरीर मत कहना। उल्टा, यह समझो कि इंसान के पास तीन शरीर होते हैं। इन्हीं में वो अपने करम का फल भोगता है।
Sandhi Notes
- तद्विपरीतकम् → तत् + विपरीतकम्
- विभोगायतनम् → वि(विविध) + भोग + आयतनम् (समास)
- चैव → च + एव
Durvāsā
Curious; seeking clarity on embodied experience and karmic fruition
How many ‘bodies’ (śarīras) does a living being possess as the basis for experiencing karmic results?
Embodied experience is structured through a triad of ‘bodies’ (trī-śarīra) that function as the locus (āyatana) for karmic enjoyment/suffering (vibhoga).
Cultivate discernment about which layer of embodiment is being purified—conduct, intention, and subtle causal tendencies—rather than reducing the self to only gross physiology.
39.39.3-6 (development of adharma/dharma bodies and the ‘third’ beyond senses)
FAQs
It reflects a Purāṇic synthesis of philosophical anthropology, using concise doctrinal language (śarīra-traya) to explain how beings undergo experience and reap results, a theme shared across late classical Sanskrit traditions.
No geographic location is named in this verse fragment; the content is doctrinal rather than tied to sacred geography.
The verse frames embodied existence as an instrument for experiencing consequences, reinforcing a moral-philosophical principle of accountability (actions yield experienced results within embodied life).
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