Varaha Purana 82.13: Adhyaya 82, Shloka 13

The Descent of the Rivers: The Sky-Gaṅgā and Her Fourfold Division

Pūrva Bhāga · Ethnographic Description (People)

Devanagari script

कृष्णवर्णाः पुरुषा महाबलिनः।

Recitation with translationVaraha Purana 82.13

Transliteration

kṛṣṇavarṇāḥ puruṣā mahābalinaḥ.

ITRANS transliteration

Translation

वहाँ के आदमी काला रंग के हैं। वो बहुत ताकतवाले हैं।

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Word by Word

• कृष्ण-वर्णाः: black-colored
• Type: Adjective
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; विशेषण (adjective)
• Role: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Root: कृष्ण (प्रातिपदिक) + वर्ण (प्रातिपदिक)

• पुरुषाः: men/persons
• Type: Noun
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन
• Role: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Root: पुरुष (प्रातिपदिक)

• महाबलिनः: very strong/mighty
• Type: Adjective
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; विशेषण (adjective)
• Role: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Root: महा (प्रातिपदिक) + बलिन् (प्रातिपदिक)

Sandhi Notes

• कृष्णवर्णाः = कृष्ण-वर्णाः (कर्मधारय)

Speaker and setting

Vira and Adbhuta rasa

Speaker

Varāha

The teaching

Kind of teaching

Guṇa-karma locality notion (descriptive, not prescriptive)

Subjects

GeographyCultural Description

Core idea

Embodiment and environment are portrayed as correlated; strength and complexion are markers of regional identity in Purāṇic imagination.

In practice

Read such descriptions as cosmographic characterization (world-building) rather than as dharma injunction; cultivate non-derogatory, contextual interpretation.

Cross references

Tags

• Classical Literature
• Ancient Geography
• Ethnographic Notes

FAQs

What is the historical significance of this verse?

It exemplifies Purāṇic ethnographic shorthand—brief physical and social descriptors used to characterize populations within cosmographic regions.

Which geographic location is identified?

The description pertains to the inhabitants of the region under discussion (linked nearby to Ketumālā), within a Purāṇic cosmographic map.

What is the primary ethical instruction?

No explicit ethical instruction is given; it is a descriptive characterization rather than a prescriptive teaching.