Varaha Purana 167.28: Adhyaya 167, Shloka 28
The Glory of the Viśrānti Tīrtha and the Account of a Rākṣasa’s Liberation
पलायमानः स परमन्धकूपेऽपतत्तदा ॥ मृतोऽसौ पतितस्तत्र राक्षसत्वमुपागतः ॥
palāyamānaḥ sa paramandhakūpe 'patat tadā || mṛto 'sau patitas tatra rākṣasatvam upāgataḥ
ഓടിപ്പോകുമ്പോൾ അവൻ അപ്പോൾ അതിഗാഢമായ അന്ധകൂപത്തിൽ വീണു. അവിടെ വീണു മരിച്ച് രാക്ഷസത്വം പ്രാപിച്ചു.
Narrator (implicit)
Varaha Avatara Context: {"is_varaha_focus":false}
Bhu Devi Dialogue: {"is_dialogue":false,"speaker_role":"observer"}
Mathura Mandala: {"is_mathura_related":false}
Dharma Shastra: {"has_dharma_rule":true,"instruction_summary":"Adharma (misconduct) ripens into a degraded post-mortem state; heed moral restraint to avoid downfall.","karmic_consequence":"Misconduct leads to a painful rebirth/condition (rākṣasa-bhāva) and continued suffering; restraint prevents such degeneration."}
Vrata Mahatmya: {"has_vrata":false}
Cosmic Boar Symbolism: {"has_symbolism":false}
Philosophical Teaching: {"has_teaching":true,"teaching_type":"karma-gati (moral causality)","core_concept":"Actions shape post-mortem destiny; fear-driven escape cannot outrun one’s karma.","practical_application":"Cultivate sadācāra and self-restraint; address wrongdoing through confession and expiation rather than denial/flight."}
Subject Matter: ["Ethics","Karmic Causality","Narrative Motif"]
Primary Rasa: bhayanaka
Secondary Rasa: karuna
Type: well/abyss motif
Related Themes: 167.167.2 (explicit cause: anācāra); 167.167.3 (release through vipra’s utterance and snāna-phala)
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A terrified figure fleeing at night slips and falls into a pitch-black well; the moment of death and transformation into a rākṣasa is implied by shadowy, altered silhouette.","item_prompts":["night sky or dim twilight","stone-lined well mouth","falling body mid-air","deep black interior suggesting ‘andha-kūpa’","subtle rākṣasa shadow/eyes emerging","dust and motion lines"],"kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural palette with dramatic chiaroscuro: the well as a dark circular void; stylized figure in dynamic fall; minimal background, emphasis on moral dread (bhayānaka).","tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore-style central circular well rim with ornate border; gold accents on the rim and garments; the darkness rendered as deep lacquered black; rākṣasa transformation hinted by glowing eyes.","mysore_prompt":"Mysore painting with refined linework: detailed stone textures of the well, restrained palette, expressive face of fear; transformation suggested subtly, not grotesque.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari miniature: steep perspective, compact composition; the well as a dark disk; sparse landscape; narrative clarity with a caption-like feel."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"ominous, cautionary","suggested_raga":"Bhairavi","pace":"medium-slow","voice_tone":"grave, narrative, slightly hushed on ‘paramāndhakūpe’"}
FAQs
It reflects a widespread Purāṇic narrative device: moral decline is dramatized through physical descent and post-mortem transformation.
No specific external location is named; the ‘dark well’ functions as a narrative setting rather than a mapped site.
The verse conveys that harmful conduct can lead to degraded states of existence, expressed through symbolic imagery of falling and darkness.
Ask anything about this verse
Answers come straight from the texts, with the shlokas they draw on. Ask in your own words.
A free Google sign-in 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.