Varaha Purana 24.20: Adhyaya 24, Shloka 20

The Birth of the Nāgas, Brahmā’s Curse, and the Pañcamī Observance

Devanagari script

नागा ऊचुः । भगवन् कुटिला जातिरस्माकं भवता कृता । विषोल्बणत्वं क्रूरत्वं दृक्शस्त्रत्वं च नस्त्वया । सम्पादितं त्वया देव इदानीं शमयाच्युत ॥ २४.२० ॥

Sanskrit recitationVaraha Purana 24.20

Transliteration

nāgā ūcuḥ | bhagavan kuṭilā jātir asmākaṃ bhavatā kṛtā | viṣolbaṇatvaṃ krūratvaṃ dṛk-śastratvaṃ ca nas tvayā | sampāditaṃ tvayā deva idānīṃ śamaya acyuta || 24.20 ||

Translation

നാഗങ്ങൾ പറഞ്ഞു—ഭഗവൻ! ഞങ്ങളുടെ ജാതിയെ നിങ്ങൾ കൂറ്റിലസ്വഭാവമുള്ളതാക്കി. അത്യധിക വിഷം, ക്രൂരത, ദൃഷ്ടിയുടെ ആയുധസമമായ ശക്തി—ഇവയെല്ലാം നിങ്ങളുടെ കൈയ്യാൽ തന്നെ സംഭവിച്ചു. അതുകൊണ്ട് ദേവാ, അച്യുതാ, ഇപ്പോൾ അത് ശമിപ്പിക്കണമേ।

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Word by Word

• nāgāḥ: Nāgas/serpentine beings

• ūcuḥ: said

• bhagavan: O Blessed Lord

• kuṭilā: crooked, deceitful, bent

• jātiḥ: kind, species, birth-nature

• asmākam: of us/our

• bhavatā: by you

• kṛtā: made, caused

• viṣa: poison/venom

• olbaṇa: excessive, intense

• viṣolbaṇatvam: excess of venom

• krūratvam: cruelty, harshness

• dṛk: sight, gaze

• śastra: weapon

• dṛkśastratvam: having the gaze as a weapon

• ca: and

• naḥ: for us/our

• tvayā: by you

• sampāditam: produced, accomplished

• deva: O god

• idānīm: now

• śamaya: pacify, quell

• acyuta: Acyuta (epithet of Viṣṇu, “the unfailing”)

Speaker

Nāgāḥ (the Nāgas)

Varaha Avatara Context

Varaha Avatara Context: {"is_varaha_focus":true}

Bhu Devi Dialogue

Bhu Devi Dialogue: {"is_dialogue":true,"speaker_role":"devotee","key_question":"Why did you fashion our species with crookedness, excessive venom, cruelty, and weapon-like gaze—and can you now pacify/mitigate these traits?"}

Mathura Mandala

Mathura Mandala: {"is_mathura_related":false}

Dharma Shastra

Dharma Shastra: {"has_dharma_rule":true,"instruction_summary":"Acknowledge the divine/causal source of one’s nature and seek śamana (pacification) through petition rather than violence; recognize that harmful capacities entail responsibility and need restraint.","karmic_consequence":"Seeking pacification and restraint reduces harm and fear; indulging venom/cruelty perpetuates cycles of curse, retaliation, and suffering."}

Vrata Mahatmya

Vrata Mahatmya: {"has_vrata":false}

Cosmic Boar Symbolism

Cosmic Boar Symbolism: {"has_symbolism":false}

Philosophical Teaching

Philosophical Teaching: {"has_teaching":true,"teaching_type":"theodicy/svabhāva and agency","core_concept":"Even if svabhāva is ‘given’ (by creation/curse), moral agency expresses in seeking śamana, restraint, and alignment with dharma; divine compassion can recalibrate destructive tendencies.","practical_application":"Do not absolutize ‘I am made this way’; seek practices/discipline that pacify harmful impulses and reduce harm to others."}

Subject Matter

Subject Matter: ["Ethics","Mythic anthropology","Karmic causality","Dialogue literature"]

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: karuna

Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka

Geographic Context

Type: divine audience

Cross References

Related Themes: Nāgas’ surrender posture (24.24.19); Brahmā’s prophecy of destruction (24.24.18)

Visual Art Cues

Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"Nāgas speak in a pleading chorus, heads bowed, confessing their crooked nature and deadly powers; the addressed lord/creator stands or sits above, listening, with the epithet ‘Acyuta’ implying steadfast mercy.","item_prompts":["nāgas with pronounced hoods and visible fangs","suggestion of venom (dark blue/green aura near mouths)","intense eyes to imply ‘dṛk-śastra’ (weapon-gaze)","hands/heads folded in supplication","the lord/creator with calm, unshaken expression (acyuta)"],"kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural: serpents with vivid hood motifs and restrained depiction of venom as aura; the lord serene and steady; strong devotional composition with bowed nāgas in the lower register.","tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore: central deity/creator with gold-leaf halo; nāgas below with jeweled hoods; venom and gaze-power shown symbolically (gem-like eyes, stylized aura) rather than graphic realism.","mysore_prompt":"Mysore: elegant, detailed nāgas; subtle visual metaphors for ‘dṛk-śastra’ (radiant lines from eyes); deity’s face calm, compassionate.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari: intimate petition scene; expressive nāga faces; minimal but evocative symbols for venom and gaze; emphasis on pathos and supplication."}

Audio Atmosphere

Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"pleading, penitential","suggested_raga":"Punnagavarali","pace":"slow","voice_tone":"soft, imploring, with emphasis on ‘idānīṃ śamaya’ and a gentle cadence on ‘acyuta’"}

Tags

• Classical Literature
• Purāṇic Narrative
• Vaishnavism
• Sanskrit Philology

FAQs

What is the historical significance of this verse?

It preserves a Purāṇic dialogue motif where non-human communities (here, Nāgas) articulate their perceived condition as the result of divine causation, reflecting a literary strategy for explaining naturalized traits (venom, fearsome gaze) within a moral-cosmological framework.

Which geographic location is identified?

No explicit geographic toponym appears in this verse; it is primarily a speech-act (petition) within a narrative sequence rather than a site-description.

What is the primary ethical instruction?

The verse foregrounds restraint and pacification (śamana) of harmful capacities—venom, cruelty, and weaponized perception—presented as a request to reduce violence and restore social-cosmic balance.