Varaha Purana 65.7: Adhyaya 65, Shloka 7

The Sovereignty Vow and the Cycle of Tithi-Based Observances

Pūrva Bhāga · Vrata-Dharma (Vaiṣṇava Observances)

Devanagari script

एकादश्यां निराहारो यो भुङ्क्ते द्वादशीदिने । शुक्ले वाऽप्यथवा कृष्णे तद्व्रतं वैष्णवं महत् ॥ ६५.७ ॥

Recitation with translationVaraha Purana 65.7

Transliteration

ekādaśyāṃ nirāhāro yo bhuṅkte dvādaśī-dine | śukle vā 'py athavā kṛṣṇe tad vrataṃ vaiṣṇavaṃ mahat || 65.7 ||

ITRANS transliteration

Translation

एकादशी को भूखा रहो, खाना द्वादशी को खाओ। शुक्ल पक्ष हो या कृष्ण पक्ष, फर्क नहीं पड़ता। यह विष्णु का बड़ा व्रत है।

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Word by Word

• ekādaśyām: on Ekādaśī
• Type: Noun
• Form: Feminine, Locative (7th), Singular
• Role: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Root: ekādaśī (प्रातिपदिक)

• nir-āhāraḥ: fasting/without food
• Type: Adjective
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular; tatpuruṣa (तत्पुरुष) ‘without food’
• Role: Karta (कर्ता)
• Root: nir (उपसर्ग) + āhāra (प्रातिपदिक)

• yaḥ: who
• Type: Noun
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular; relative pronoun
• Role: Karta (कर्ता)
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)

• bhuṅkte: eats
• Type: Verb
• Form: Present tense (लट्), 3rd person, Singular, Ātmanepada (आत्मनेपद)
• Role: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Root: bhuj (धातु)

• dvādaśī-dine: on Dvādaśī day
• Type: Noun
• Form: Neuter, Locative (7th), Singular; tatpuruṣa ‘on the day of Dvādaśī’
• Role: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Root: dvādaśī (प्रातिपदिक) + dina (प्रातिपदिक)

• śukle: in the bright (fortnight)
• Type: Adjective
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Locative (7th), Singular; used elliptically for śuklapakṣe
• Role: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Root: śukla (प्रातिपदिक)

• vā: or
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: Disjunctive particle (विकल्पार्थक निपात)
• Role: Sambandha/Discourse particle (निपात)
• Root: vā (अव्यय)

• api: also/even
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: Particle (समुच्चय/अपि)
• Role: Sambandha/Discourse particle (निपात)
• Root: api (अव्यय)

• athavā: or else
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: Alternative marker (विकल्पार्थक अव्यय)
• Role: Sambandha/Discourse particle (निपात)
• Root: atha (अव्यय) + vā (अव्यय)

• kṛṣṇe: in the dark (fortnight)
• Type: Adjective
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Locative (7th), Singular; elliptic for kṛṣṇapakṣe
• Role: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Root: kṛṣṇa (प्रातिपदिक)

• tat: that
• Type: Adjective
• Form: Neuter, Nominative/Accusative, Singular
• Role: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)

• vratam: vow
• Type: Noun
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular
• Role: Karta (कर्ता)
• Root: vrata (प्रातिपदिक)

• vaiṣṇavam: Vaiṣṇava (of Viṣṇu)
• Type: Adjective
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular; adjective qualifying vrataṃ
• Role: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Root: vaiṣṇava (प्रातिपदिक)

• mahat: great
• Type: Adjective
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular; adjective qualifying vrataṃ
• Role: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Root: mahat (प्रातिपदिक)

Sandhi Notes

• vā api → vā 'pi (elision of a)
• dvādaśī-dine treated as tatpuruṣa compound
• śukle/kṛṣṇe are locatives with implied pakṣe

Speaker and setting

Shanta and Bhakti rasa

Speaker

Varāha

The teaching

Kind of teaching

Karma-yoga / niyama-dharma

Subjects

EthicsRitual PracticeDharma-shastra

Core idea

Discipline of appetite and time (tithi) as a means to align life with Viṣṇu-centered dharma.

In practice

Fast on Ekādaśī; eat on Dvādaśī as the prescribed completion (pāraṇa), regardless of fortnight.

The Varaha avatara

With the Earth

Instruction given by Varāha as dharma-teacher.

Dharma

Vrata

Mathura and Krishna

Cross references

Tags

• Classical Literature
• Purāṇic Studies
• Vaiṣṇavism
• Vrata Traditions

FAQs

What is the historical significance of this verse?

It reflects a widely attested Purāṇic and Dharma-oriented framework for calendrical observances, presenting Ekādaśī fasting with Dvādaśī re-feeding as a standardized Vaiṣṇava vrata pattern across both lunar fortnights.

Which geographic location is identified?

No geographic location is specified in this verse; the focus is on lunar-calendar timing (Ekādaśī/Dvādaśī) rather than sacred geography.

What is the primary ethical instruction?

The verse articulates a disciplined practice of self-restraint (fasting on Ekādaśī) followed by regulated consumption (eating on Dvādaśī), framed as an important ethical-ritual observance within Vaiṣṇava practice.