Varaha Purana 94.39: Adhyaya 94, Shloka 39

The Birth of Mahiṣāsura and the Goddess’s Victory as Mahīṣamardinī

Pūrva Bhāga · Devī–Daitya Saṅgrāma (Narrative of the Goddess and the Asura)

Devanagari script

भूत्वा विंशभुजा देवी सिंहमास्थाय दंशिता । सस्मार रुद्रं देवेशं रौद्रं संहारकारणम् ॥

Recitation with translationVaraha Purana 94.39

Transliteration

bhūtvā viṃśabhujā devī siṃhamāsthāya daṃśitā | sasmāra rudraṃ deveśaṃ raudraṃ saṃhārakāraṇam ||

ITRANS transliteration

Translation

देवी ने बीस हाथ बना लिए। शेर पर सवार हो गई, लड़ने के लिए तैयार। रुद्र को याद किया, जो भगवानों का बड़ा है। रुद्र जो बड़ा गुस्से वाला है और सब खत्म करने वाला है।

Ask anything about this verse...Ask

Word by Word

• bhūtvā: having become
• Type: Verb
• Form: त्वान्त (ktvā) अव्ययकृदन्त; पूर्वकालिक क्रिया (absolutive/gerund)
• Role: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Root: bhū (धातु)

• viṃśa-bhujā: twenty-armed
• Type: Adjective
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; संख्यापूर्वक तत्पुरुषः (viṃśati-bhujā = having twenty arms)
• Role: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Root: viṃśa (प्रातिपदिक) + bhuja (प्रातिपदिक)

• devī: the goddess
• Type: Noun
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन
• Role: Karta (कर्ता)
• Root: devī (प्रातिपदिक)

• siṃham: a lion
• Type: Noun
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन
• Role: Karma (कर्म)
• Root: siṃha (प्रातिपदिक)

• āsthāya: mounting / taking support of
• Type: Verb
• Form: त्वान्त (ktvā) अव्ययकृदन्त; उपसर्गः आ-; अर्थः ‘आरोह्य/आश्रित्य’
• Role: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Root: ā-√sthā (धातु)

• daṃśitā: bitten / wounded by biting
• Type: Adjective
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past passive participle)
• Role: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Root: daṃśita (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक; √daṃś/daś ‘to bite’)

• sasmāra: remembered / called to mind
• Type: Verb
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद
• Role: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Root: √smṛ (धातु)

• rudram: Rudra
• Type: Noun
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन
• Role: Karma (कर्म)
• Root: rudra (प्रातिपदिक)

• deveśam: lord of the gods
• Type: Noun
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (devānām īśaḥ)
• Role: Karma (कर्म)
• Root: deva (प्रातिपदिक) + īśa (प्रातिपदिक)

• raudram: fierce
• Type: Adjective
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; विशेषणम् (rudram इति विशेष्यस्य)
• Role: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Root: raudra (प्रातिपदिक)

• saṃhāra-kāraṇam: the cause of destruction
• Type: Noun
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (saṃhārasya kāraṇam)
• Role: Karma (कर्म)
• Root: saṃhāra (प्रातिपदिक) + kāraṇa (प्रातिपदिक)

Sandhi Notes

• siṃhamāsthāya = siṃham + āsthāya
• (line break) daṃśitā | sasmāra (no sandhi)
• saṃhārakāraṇam = saṃhāra-kāraṇam

Speaker and setting

Raudra and Vira rasa

Speaker

Varāha

The teaching

Kind of teaching

Cosmic-function ethics (saṃhāra as dharma)

Subjects

CosmologyEthicsCultural Narrative

Core idea

Fierce force (raudra) is righteous when yoked to protection of order; remembrance (smaraṇa) aligns action with divine purpose.

In practice

Before decisive confrontation, ground oneself in higher principle (smaraṇa/mantra); use intensity without hatred—aim it at removing harm.

Symbolism of the boar

Cross references

Tags

• Classical Literature
• Purāṇic Narrative
• Iconography
• Śaiva–Vaiṣṇava Intertext

FAQs

What is the historical significance of this verse?

It reflects Purāṇic intertextuality where divine functions (protection, dissolution) are coordinated across deities, informing later theological and artistic syntheses.

Which geographic location is identified?

No geographic location is mentioned in this verse.

What is the primary ethical instruction?

The passage frames destructive power (saṃhāra) as functional—mobilized to end harmful disorder—within a broader moral cosmos.