Varaha Purana 56.4: Adhyaya 56, Shloka 4
Ritual Procedure for the Dhanyavrata
Prosperity Vow
Pūrva Bhāga · Ritual/Vaiṣṇava Stotra-Vidhi (devatā-arcana and mantra-nāma invocation)
संवर्त्तायेति च शिरो ज्वलनायेति सर्वतः । अभ्यर्च्यैवं विधानॆन देवदेवं जनार्दनम् ॥ ५६.४ ॥
saṃvarttāyeti ca śiro jvalanāyeti sarvataḥ | abhyarcyaivaṃ vidhānena devadevaṃ janārdanam || 56.4 ||
saMvarttAyeti cha shiro jvalanAyeti sarvataH | abhyarchyaivaM vidhAnena devadevaM janArdanam || 56.4 ||
संवर्त्ताय और ज्वलनाय नाम के साथ भगवान की पूजा करो। उनका सिर पूरे तरीके से पूजो। जनार्दन, जो सब देवताओं के बड़े हैं, उनकी आरती करो।
Sandhi Notes
- संवर्त्तायेति = संवर्त्ताय + इति
- ज्वलनायेति = ज्वलनाय + इति
- अभ्यर्च्यैवं = अभ्यर्च्य + एवम्
Varāha
Attentive; absorbing the completion of the limb-epithet worship
Which epithets complete the worship (especially of the head), and how should Janārdana be venerated according to vidhi?
Janārdana is worshipped through names that encode cosmic functions (blazing energy and dissolution), teaching that ritual epithets are gateways to metaphysical insight.
Conclude worship by reciting these epithets with focused mind, honoring the deity’s head as the seat of cosmic sovereignty; maintain procedural fidelity (vidhi) for inner steadiness.
The head crowned with ‘Saṃvarta’ (cosmic dissolution/withdrawal) and ‘Jvalana’ (blazing fire) signals the deity as both the consuming end and illuminating power—yajña culminates in the Supreme who both burns and reabsorbs the cosmos.
Head=Saṃvarta/Jvalana: the cosmic fire of time and dissolution; completion of limb-nyāsa mirrors completing a sacrifice from kindling to final oblation.
Non-dual sovereignty of the Lord over sṛṣṭi-sthiti-laya: the same Janārdana is immanent as ritual fire and transcendent as the power of dissolution (saṃvarta).
Worship the head with the epithets ‘Saṃvarttāya’ and ‘Jvalanāya’ and, following the prescribed procedure, venerate Janārdana, the God of gods.
Following vidhi with correct nāma-recitation completes the rite and secures its fruit; omission disrupts the prescribed completeness (pūrṇatā) of worship.
Auspiciousness/fortune and spiritual elevation through complete, name-infused worship of Janārdana.
Janārdana is a common Viṣṇu epithet later applied to Kṛṣṇa; here it remains general Vaiṣṇava theology without Mathurā anchoring.
Varāha Purāṇa: Dhanyavrata-vidhi sequence (56.56.2-4)
FAQs
It documents a Purāṇic-style arcana (worship) instruction using divine epithets, reflecting the integration of liturgical naming practices into narrative scripture.
No specific geographic location is named in this verse fragment; it is primarily procedural and devotional in focus.
The verse emphasizes disciplined practice—performing worship according to a stated method (vidhi), highlighting procedural integrity and attentiveness in ritual action.
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