Varaha Purana 6.20: Adhyaya 6, Shloka 20

The Puṇḍarīkākṣapāraka Hymn and Puṣkara Tīrtha: The Account of King Vasu’s Release from Sin

Pūrva Bhāga · Dialogic Narrative (Rājā–Vyādha Saṁvāda)

Devanagari script

राजोवाच । कोऽसि किं कार्यमिह ते कस्मादागतवानसि । एतन्मे कथय व्याध एतदिच्छामि वेदितुम ॥ ६.२० ॥

Recitation with translationVaraha Purana 6.20

Transliteration

rājovāca | ko'si kiṁ kāryam iha te kasmād āgatavān asi | etan me kathaya vyādha etad icchāmi veditum || 6.20 ||

ITRANS transliteration

Translation

राजा ने कहा, तू कौन है? यहाँ क्या काम है? कहाँ से आया है? यह सब मुझे बता। मुझे यह जानना है।

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Word by Word

• rājā: the king
• Type: Noun
• Form: Pumliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; speaker/subject of ‘uvāca’ (in compound)
• Role: Karta (कर्ता)
• Root: rājan (प्रातिपदिक)

• uvāca: said
• Type: Verb
• Form: Liṭ-lakāra (perfect), Prathama-puruṣa, Ekavacana, Parasmaipada
• Role: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Root: √vac (वच्)

• kaḥ: who
• Type: Noun
• Form: Interrogative pronoun, Pumliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; predicate nominative
• Role: Prātipadikārtha (प्रातिपदिकार्थ; predicate)
• Root: kim (प्रातिपदिक)

• asi: are (you)
• Type: Verb
• Form: Laṭ-lakāra, Madhyama-puruṣa (2nd/मध्यम), Ekavacana, Parasmaipada
• Role: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Root: √as (अस्)

• kim: what
• Type: Noun
• Form: Interrogative, Napumsaka, Prathamā/Dvitīyā (here predicate/object sense), Ekavacana
• Role: Prātipadikārtha (प्रातिपदिकार्थ; predicate)
• Root: kim (प्रातिपदिक)

• kāryam: business, task
• Type: Noun
• Form: Napumsaka, Prathamā, Ekavacana; predicate nominative ‘what business (is)’
• Role: Prātipadikārtha (प्रातिपदिकार्थ; predicate)
• Root: kārya (प्रातिपदिक; kṛdanta from √kṛ with -ya, ‘to be done’)

• iha: here
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: Deśa-avyaya (adverb of place/देश)
• Role: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण; location)
• Root: iha (अव्यय)

• te: for you / to you
• Type: Noun
• Form: Sarvanāma, Caturthī vibhakti (4th/चतुर्थी), Ekavacana; dative ‘for you/your’
• Role: Sampradāna (सम्प्रदान)
• Root: tvam (प्रातिपदिक)

• kasmāt: from where / for what reason
• Type: Noun
• Form: Interrogative, Pumliṅga/Napumsaka, Pañcamī vibhakti (5th/पञ्चमी), Ekavacana; ‘from where/why’
• Role: Apādāna (अपादान)
• Root: kim (प्रातिपदिक)

• āgatavān: (having) come
• Type: Verb
• Form: Kta-vat (क्तवत्) past active participle used with ‘asi’; Pumliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; forms periphrastic perfect sense ‘have come’
• Role: Karta (कर्ता)
• Root: ā + √gam (गम्) → āgata + vat (प्रातिपदिक; kṛdanta)

• asi: are (you)
• Type: Verb
• Form: Laṭ-lakāra, Madhyama-puruṣa, Ekavacana, Parasmaipada; auxiliary with ‘āgatavān’
• Role: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Root: √as (अस्)

• etat: this
• Type: Noun
• Form: Napumsaka, Dvitīyā, Ekavacana; object of ‘kathaya’
• Role: Karma (कर्म)
• Root: etad (प्रातिपदिक)

• me: to me
• Type: Noun
• Form: Sarvanāma, Ṣaṣṭhī vibhakti (6th/षष्ठी), Ekavacana; enclitic genitive ‘to me/of me’ (here ‘to me’ in sense of recipient)
• Role: Sampradāna (सम्प्रदान)
• Root: asmad (प्रातिपदिक)

• kathaya: tell
• Type: Verb
• Form: Loṭ-lakāra (लोट्, imperative), Madhyama-puruṣa, Ekavacana, Parasmaipada
• Role: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Root: √kath (कथ्)

• vyādha: O hunter
• Type: Noun
• Form: Pumliṅga, Sambodhana, Ekavacana; address
• Role: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Root: vyādha (प्रातिपदिक)

• etat: this
• Type: Noun
• Form: Napumsaka, Dvitīyā, Ekavacana; object of ‘icchāmi’ (understood: ‘to know this’)
• Role: Karma (कर्म)
• Root: etad (प्रातिपदिक)

• icchāmi: I wish/desire
• Type: Verb
• Form: Laṭ-lakāra, Uttama-puruṣa, Ekavacana, Parasmaipada
• Role: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Root: √iṣ (इष्) / √iच्छ् (desiderative stem icch-)

• veditum: to know
• Type: Verb
• Form: Tumun-pratyaya (infinitive/तुमुन्), avyaya-kṛdanta; ‘to know’
• Role: Prayojana (प्रयोजन; purpose/complement of desire)
• Root: √vid (विद्)

Sandhi Notes

• rājovāca = rājā + uvāca (ā+u→o)
• ko'si = kaḥ + asi (visarga→o’)
• āgatavānasi = āgatavān + asi
• etad icchāmi = etat + icchāmi (t→d sandhi)

Speaker and setting

Vira and Bhayanaka rasaSetting: Royal encounter setting

Speaker

Rājā (the King)

Bhu Devi and Varaha

In this verse

She asks

What she asks

Who are you, what is your purpose here, and from where have you come?

The teaching

Kind of teaching

Practical ethics / discernment

Subjects

DialogueIdentity and IntentEthics

Core idea

Right action begins with right knowledge—clarify identity and motive before engagement.

In practice

In leadership and daily life, ask: who, why, and from where (context) before trusting or acting.

Dharma

Cross references

Tags

• Classical Literature
• Purāṇic Narrative
• Sanskrit Dialogue

FAQs

What is the historical significance of this verse?

It preserves a formal interrogative exchange typical of Purāṇic narrative style, where a ruler establishes identity, motive, and provenance before proceeding with ethical or instructional discourse.

Which geographic location is identified?

No specific geographic location is named in this verse; it focuses on personal identification and the reason for arrival.

What is the primary ethical instruction?

The verse models prudent inquiry: a leader seeks clear information about a stranger’s identity and purpose before making judgments or decisions.