Varaha Purana 108.9: Adhyaya 108, Shloka 9
The Eulogy and Procedure of Donating the ‘Salt-Cow’
Lavaṇadhenu
वेदवेदाङ्गविदुषे श्रोत्रियायाहिताग्नये ॥ ईदृशाय प्रदातव्या तथाऽमत्सरिणे नृप ॥
vedavedāṅgaviduṣe śrotriyāyāhitāgnaye || īdṛśāya pradātavyā tathā 'matsariṇe nṛpa ||
വേദ-വേദാംഗങ്ങളിൽ പണ്ഡിതനും ശ്രോത്രിയനും ആഹിതാഗ്നിയുമായവനു നൽകണം; അത്തരം വ്യക്തിക്കും, അസൂയരഹിതനുമായവനും—ഹേ നൃപ—ഇത് ദാനമായി നൽകേണ്ടതാണ്।
Hotṛ
Varaha Avatara Context: {"is_varaha_focus":false}
Bhu Devi Dialogue: {"is_dialogue":false,"speaker_role":"instructor"}
Mathura Mandala: {"is_mathura_related":false}
Dharma Shastra: {"has_dharma_rule":true,"topic":"dana","instruction_summary":"Donate to a Veda-Vedāṅga-knower who is a śrotriya and āhitāgni, and also to one who is free from envy (amatsarin), addressing the king as the responsible patron.","karmic_consequence":"Dāna to śrotriya/āhitāgni/amatsarin recipients yields stable, ‘well-placed’ merit and supports dharma’s continuity; giving to envious/impure recipients is portrayed as spiritually inefficient and socially corrosive."}
Vrata Mahatmya: {"has_vrata":false}
Cosmic Boar Symbolism: {"has_symbolism":false}
Philosophical Teaching: {"has_teaching":true,"teaching_type":"rāja-dharma and inner purity","core_concept":"Outer ritual qualification (śrotriya, āhitāgni) must be joined with inner virtue (absence of envy) for true receptivity of dāna.","practical_application":"As patron/householder, support those who maintain sacred disciplines and cultivate non-envy; treat charity as strengthening institutions of learning and worship."}
Subject Matter: ["Ethics","Ritual Practice","Education"]
Primary Rasa: śānta
Secondary Rasa: vīra
Type: Socio-political setting
Related Themes: Varāha Purāṇa 108.6-8 (preparation, timing, and basic recipient criteria for the same donation)
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A king or noble patron offers gifts to a fire-maintaining brāhmaṇa near a lit sacred fire; the recipient is serene and non-envious, blessing the donor.","item_prompts":["small sacred fire altar (agni) with flames","brāhmaṇa with ladle/kuśa","kingly donor with crown or royal cloth","manuscripts indicating śrotriya status","gesture of blessing (abhaya/vara)","offerings and gift bundles"],"kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural style: bright agni flames, stylized royal figure, brāhmaṇa with ritual implements, strong compositional symmetry.","tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore style: gold-leaf flames and ornaments, regal donor, richly decorated altar, iconic blessing pose.","mysore_prompt":"Mysore style: refined firelight, detailed ritual tools, dignified expressions, balanced courtly setting.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari style: palace courtyard with small fire altar, delicate figures, soft hills/trees beyond, intimate patron-priest exchange."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"authoritative, court-addressing, ethically firm","suggested_raga":"Shankarabharanam","pace":"medium","voice_tone":"projected, formal, admonitory"}
FAQs
It preserves technical social-religious categories (śrotriya, āhitāgni) and adds a moral criterion (non-envy), showing the blend of institutional learning and personal ethics in recipient selection.
No geographic location is identified.
The ethical focus is recipient-worthiness defined by learning, disciplined practice, and non-envious character, framing giving as both social and moral discernment.
Ask anything about this verse
Answers come straight from the texts, with the shlokas they draw on. Ask in your own words.
A free sign-in with Google or Apple keeps your chat saved across web and the app.
Read Varaha Purana in the Vedapath app
Scan the QR code to open this directly in the app, with word-by-word meanings, Sanskrit recitation where available, and more.