Varaha Purana 2.41: Adhyaya 2, Shloka 41

Cosmogony and the Ninefold Creation: Rudra’s Origin and the Prelude to the Sāvitrī–Veda Narrative

Devanagari script

धरण्युवाच । नवधा सृष्टिरुत्पन्ना ब्रह्मणोऽव्यक्तजन्मनः । कथं सा ववृधे देव एतन्मे कथयाच्युत ॥ २.४० ॥

Sanskrit recitationVaraha Purana 2.41

Transliteration

dharaṇy uvāca | navadhā sṛṣṭir utpannā brahmaṇo 'vyaktajanmanaḥ | kathaṃ sā vavṛdhe deva etan me kathayācyuta || 2.40 ||

Translation

Dharā (Bumi) berkata: “Ciptaan sembilan macam ini telah muncul dari Brahmā yang asalnya tak termanifest. Wahai dewa, bagaimana ciptaan itu bertumbuh dan meluas? Wahai Acyuta, jelaskanlah kepadaku.”

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Word by Word

• dharaṇī: Earth (goddess)
• dharaṇī: Karta (कर्ता; speaker identifier)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dharaṇī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine (स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular (एकवचन)

• uvāca: said
• uvāca: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vac (धातु)
• Form: Perfect (लिट्), 3rd person (प्रथमपुरुष), Singular (एकवचन), Parasmaipada (परस्मैपद)

• navadhā: in nine ways
• navadhā: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: navadhā (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya (अव्यय), adverb (क्रियाविशेषण) meaning ‘in nine ways’

• sṛṣṭiḥ: creation
• sṛṣṭiḥ: Karta (कर्ता/subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sṛṣṭi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine (स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular (एकवचन)

• utpannā: arisen/produced
• utpannā: Kriyā (क्रिया; participial predicate of sṛṣṭiḥ)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ut-pad (धातु)
• Form: Past active participle (कृत्: क्त; used adjectivally), Feminine (स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular (एकवचन)

• brahmaṇaḥ: of Brahmā/of Brahman
• brahmaṇaḥ: Sambandha (षष्ठी-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine/Neuter (ब्रह्मन्), Genitive (6th/षष्ठी), Singular (एकवचन)

• avyakta-janmanaḥ: whose birth is unmanifest
• avyakta-janmanaḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण of brahmaṇaḥ)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: avyakta (प्रातिपदिक) + janman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine/Neuter (पुं/नपुं), Genitive (6th/षष्ठी), Singular (एकवचन); qualifies brahmaṇaḥ

• katham: how?
• katham: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: katham (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya (अव्यय), interrogative adverb (प्रश्नवाचक क्रियाविशेषण)

• sā: she/that (creation)
• sā: Karta (कर्ता; refers to sṛṣṭiḥ)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Pronoun (सर्वनाम), Feminine (स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular (एकवचन)

• vavṛdhe: grew/increased
• vavṛdhe: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vṛdh (धातु)
• Form: Perfect (लिट्), 3rd person (प्रथमपुरुष), Singular (एकवचन), Ātmanepada (आत्मनेपद)

• deva: O god
• deva: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Vocative (8th/सम्बोधन), Singular (एकवचन)

• etat: this
• etat: Karma (कर्म; object of kathaya)
• Type: Noun
• Root: etad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Pronoun (सर्वनाम), Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular (एकवचन)

• me: to me
• me: Sampradāna (सम्प्रदान; recipient)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Pronoun (अस्मद्), Dative (4th/चतुर्थी), Singular (एकवचन) (enclitic)

• kathaya: tell
• kathaya: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: kath (धातु)
• Form: Imperative (लोट्), 2nd person (मध्यमपुरुष), Singular (एकवचन), Parasmaipada (परस्मैपद)

• acyuta: O Acyuta (Viṣṇu)
• acyuta: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: acyuta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Vocative (8th/सम्बोधन), Singular (एकवचन)

Speaker

Dharā (Pṛthivī / Earth)

Tags

• Classical Literature
• Purāṇic Cosmology
• Vaiṣṇavism
• Sanskrit Philology

FAQs

What is the historical significance of this verse?

It preserves a standard Purāṇic pedagogical format—Earth questioning a divine instructor—framing cosmology through enumerated creation schemes (here, a “ninefold” model) that circulated across early medieval Sanskrit textual traditions.

Which geographic location is identified?

No specific geographic site is named in this verse; the focus is cosmological (creation and its expansion) rather than sacred geography.

What is the primary ethical instruction?

No direct ethical injunction is stated; the verse models inquiry-based learning, presenting cosmological knowledge as something to be asked, clarified, and transmitted through dialogue.