Varaha Purana 94.45: Adhyaya 94, Shloka 45
The Birth of Mahiṣāsura and the Goddess’s Victory as Mahīṣamardinī
Pūrva Bhāga · Genealogical/Character Description within a Daitya-Devī Narrative
कुर्वतस्तु तपो घोरं निराहारस्य शोभने । आद्या तु विप्रचित्तेस्तु सुता सुरसुतोपमा । माहिष्मतीति विख्याता रूपेणासदृशी भुवि ॥
kurvatas tu tapo ghoraṁ nirāhārasya śobhane | ādyā tu vipracittes tu sutā surasutopamā | māhiṣmatīti vikhyātā rūpeṇāsadṛśī bhuvi ||
kurvatastu tapo ghoraM nirAhArasya shobhane | AdyA tu viprachittestu sutA surasutopamA | mAhiShmatIti vikhyAtA rUpeNAsadRRishI bhuvi
वो तपस्या कर रहा था, कुछ खाया नहीं। तब विप्रचित्ति की बड़ी बेटी पैदा हुई। उसका नाम महिष्मती था। वो इतनी सुंदर थी जैसे देवता की बेटी हो। धरती पर उसके जैसी कोई नहीं थी।
Sandhi Notes
- रूपेणासदृशी → रूपेण + असदृशी
- माहिष्मतीति → माहिष्मती + इति
- विप्रचित्तेस्तु → विप्रचित्तेः + तु
- सुरसुतोपमा → सुरसुत + उपमा
Varāha
Adharma embodied by a ‘foremost daitya’ is ultimately subdued; time (kāla) ripens conflict toward re-establishing balance.
Endure long struggles with steadiness; act decisively when the moment to curb harm arrives.
Varaha Purana 94.94 (continuation into Devī’s victory and stuti)
FAQs
The verse preserves a Purāṇic style of combining ascetic motifs (tapas, nirāhāra) with genealogical cataloguing, useful for tracing how later Sanskrit traditions organized mythic lineages.
The name “Māhiṣmatī” can also denote a famed ancient city in Sanskrit literature; however, in this verse it functions as a personal name (a daughter of Vipracitti), not an explicit place-identification.
Indirectly, it highlights tapas (disciplined austerity) as a culturally significant practice within Purāṇic narratives, without issuing a direct prescriptive command.
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