Varaha Purana 138.5 — Adhyaya 138, Shloka 5
The Episode of the Khañjarīṭa Bird
and the Saukarava Tīrtha’s Merit
अकामान्म्रियमाणस्य मानुषत्वमजायत ॥ किं वान्यद्वृत्तमाख्याहि क्षेत्रे सौकरवेऽमले।
akāmān mriyamāṇasya mānuṣatvam ajāyata || kiṃ vānyad vṛttam ākhyāhi kṣetre saukarave 'male
“Bagi orang yang wafat tanpa keinginan pun, kelahiran sebagai manusia muncul kembali. Peristiwa apa lagi yang terjadi—ceritakanlah—di kṣetra Saukārava yang suci itu?”
Pṛthivī (default inquirer framework)
Varaha Avatara Context: {"is_varaha_focus":true,"aspect_highlighted":"None","boar_form_detail":"None","earth_interaction":"Earth presses Varāha for explanation of a paradoxical karmic outcome within his pure kṣetra"}
Bhu Devi Dialogue: {"is_dialogue":true,"speaker_role":"questioner","bhu_devi_state":"curious, puzzled by a karmic paradox","key_question":"Why/How did one ‘dying without desire’ obtain human birth again, and what other events occurred in the pure Saukārava-kṣetra?"}
Mathura Mandala: {"is_mathura_related":false,"specific_site":"Saukārava-kṣetra (amala)","parikrama_context":"None","krishna_connection":"None"}
Dharma Shastra: {"has_dharma_rule":true,"topic":"None","instruction_summary":"Raises a soteriological issue: the karmic logic of rebirth even when desirelessness is claimed; implies the need to distinguish true vairāgya from mere akāmata at death.","karmic_consequence":"Implied: incomplete detachment/latent saṃskāras can still yield rebirth; tīrtha-context may modify or reveal karmic outcomes."}
Vrata Mahatmya: {"has_vrata":false,"vrata_name":"None","tithi_month":"None","promised_fruit":"None"}
Cosmic Boar Symbolism: {"has_symbolism":false,"symbolic_interpretation":"None","yajna_varaha_imagery":"None","vedantic_connection":"None"}
Philosophical Teaching: {"has_teaching":true,"teaching_type":"karma-viveka / soteriology","core_concept":"Apparent desirelessness at death is not identical with liberation; subtle impressions (vāsanā) and dharma/adharma residues govern rebirth unless knowledge/bhakti fully matures.","practical_application":"Cultivate sustained vairāgya and sattva through life (not only at death); use tīrtha, dāna, and seva as supports, but aim for inner transformation."}
Subject Matter: ["Ethics","Heritage Sites"]
Primary Rasa: adbhuta
Secondary Rasa: vicāra
Type: kṣetra/tīrtha
Related Themes: Leads into subsequent questions on merits of acts (138.6–7) as practical means within the kṣetra
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"Bhu Devī, earnest and slightly perplexed, asks Varāha about a case where a seemingly desireless dying person still returns to human birth, within the pure Saukārava field.","item_prompts":["Bhu Devī questioning with furrowed brow softened by devotion","Varāha as teacher listening","symbolic backdrop: tīrtha water and a faint funeral/transition motif (lamp, path) kept subtle","inscription-like cue ‘amala kṣetra’"],"kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural: dialogue tableau with expressive eyes; include a subdued lamp and riverbank to hint at death/transition, while keeping the sacred field serene.","tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore: teacher Varāha enthroned with gold halo; Bhu Devī in inquiry; background includes stylized tīrtha kalasha and a small lamp motif for the death-question.","mysore_prompt":"Mysore: nuanced facial expressions; minimal symbolic props (lamp, water pot) to suggest the karmic theme without crowding.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari: gentle narrative vignette near a stream; a tiny distant figure/path to suggest ‘rebirth journey’; soft colors emphasizing contemplative inquiry."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"contemplative questioning","suggested_raga":"Todi (for gravity and introspection)","pace":"vilambita","voice_tone":"thoughtful, slightly emphatic on ‘akāmān mriyamāṇasya’ and ‘kim vānyad’"}
FAQs
It reflects Purāṇic discussions of death, intention, and post-mortem outcomes, framed within the sanctifying context of a kṣetra.
Saukārava-kṣetra is explicitly named as the setting for noteworthy events; the verse does not provide further topographic markers.
It foregrounds the role of intention (kāma/akāma) and context (kṣetra) in evaluating actions and outcomes, inviting careful moral reflection rather than simplistic causality.
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