Varaha Purana 39.49: Adhyaya 39, Shloka 49

Discrimination of the Three Bodies and the Dharaṇī Vow: A Manual for Dvādaśī Observance

Devanagari script

रसातलगता वेदा यथा देव त्वयाहृताः । मत्स्यरूपेण तद्वन्मां भवानुद्धर केशव ॥ एवमुच्चार्य तस्याग्रे जागरं तत्र कारयेत् ॥ ३९.४९ ॥

Recitation with translationVaraha Purana 39.49

Transliteration

rasātalagatā vedā yathā deva tvayāhṛtāḥ | matsyarūpeṇa tadvan māṃ bhavān uddhara keśava | evam uccārya tasyāgre jāgaraṃ tatra kārayet || 39.49 ||

Translation

“Wahai Dewa, sebagaimana Weda yang telah jatuh ke Rasātala Engkau angkat kembali dengan mengambil rupa Ikan, demikian pula, wahai Keśava, angkatlah aku.” Setelah mengucapkannya, hendaknya di hadapan-Nya diadakan jāgara (jaga malam).

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Word by Word

• रसातल-गताः: gone down to Rasātala
• रसातल-गताः: विशेषण (Qualifier of वेदाः)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: रसातल (प्रातिपदिक) + गत (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक, √गम्)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; तत्पुरुष: ‘gone to Rasātala’

• वेदाः: the Vedas
• वेदाः: कर्ता (Karta/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वेद (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन

• यथा: just as
• यथा: सम्बन्ध (Comparative particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; उपमान/प्रकारार्थक (‘as/just as’)

• देव: O God
• देव: सम्बोधन (Address)
• Type: Noun
• Root: देव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, सम्बोधन (Vocative/सम्बोधन), एकवचन

• त्वया: by you
• त्वया: कर्ता (Karta/Agent in passive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: युष्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: उत्तमपुरुष-सर्वनाम, तृतीया (3rd), एकवचन

• आहृताः: were brought back
• आहृताः: क्रिया-विशेषण (Predicate participle)
• Type: Verb
• Root: आ-√हृ (धातु)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past passive participle), पुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; ‘brought/retrieved’

• मत्स्य-रूपेण: in fish-form
• मत्स्य-रूपेण: करण (Karaṇa/Instrument)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मत्स्य (प्रातिपदिक) + रूप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, तृतीया (3rd), एकवचन

• तद्वत्: likewise
• तद्वत्: प्रकार (Manner)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तद्वत् (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; तुलनार्थक (‘likewise/in the same way’)

• माम्: me
• माम्: कर्म (Karma/Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: उत्तमपुरुष-सर्वनाम, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• भवान्: you (honored one)
• भवान्: कर्ता (Karta/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भवत् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक/आदरार्थ)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; आदरार्थ-प्रयोग (honorific ‘you’)

• उद्धर: lift up; rescue
• उद्धर: क्रिया (Verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: उद्-√हृ (धातु)
• Form: लोट् (Imperative), मध्यमपुरुष (2nd), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• केशव: O Keśava
• केशव: सम्बोधन (Address)
• Type: Noun
• Root: केशव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, सम्बोधन (Vocative), एकवचन

• एवम्: thus
• एवम्: प्रकार (Manner)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एवम् (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; प्रकारार्थक (‘thus’)

• उच्चार्य: having recited
• उच्चार्य: पूर्वकाल-क्रिया (Gerundial)
• Type: Verb
• Root: उद्-√चर् (धातु)
• Form: ल्यप्/क्त्वान्त-समकक्ष (gerund): having uttered/recited

• तस्य: of it/of him
• तस्य: सम्बन्ध (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसकलिङ्गे, षष्ठी (6th), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• अग्रे: in front
• अग्रे: अधिकरण (Adhikaraṇa/Locative)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अग्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, सप्तमी (7th), एकवचन; ‘in front’

• जागरम्: a vigil (keeping awake)
• जागरम्: कर्म (Karma/Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: जागर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; ‘night-vigil/wakefulness’

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: अधिकरण (Adverbial locative)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक-अव्यय

• कारयेत्: should arrange/should have (it) done
• कारयेत्: क्रिया (Verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: कृ (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन; णिच्-प्रयोजक (causative): ‘should cause to be done/should arrange’

Speaker

Pṛthivī (defaulted by dialogue framework; direct addressee is Keśava/Viṣṇu)

Tags

• Classical Literature
• Purāṇic Narrative
• Vaiṣṇavism
• Mythic Cosmography

FAQs

What is the historical significance of this verse?

It preserves a widely attested Purāṇic motif: the recovery of the Vedas from a nether or cosmic realm, here invoked as an analogy for the restoration of the Earth—illustrating how Purāṇas interlink avatāra narratives with cosmological order and cultural memory.

Which geographic location is identified?

Rasātala is not a terrestrial site but a cosmographic ‘nether region’ in classical Indian cosmology; it functions as a mythic spatial category rather than a modern mappable location.

What is the primary ethical instruction?

The verse frames restoration (uddhāra) as a normative ideal—recovering what has been displaced or endangered (knowledge and Earth)—and pairs it with disciplined observance (jāgara) as a culturally sanctioned practice of remembrance and commitment.