Varaha Purana 36.18: Adhyaya 36, Shloka 18

Account of the Maṇija Kings and a Hymn to Govinda Leading to Liberation

Devanagari script

अगोत्रमस्पर्शमरूपगन्ध- मनामनिर्देशमजं वरेण्यम् । गोपेन्द्र त्वां यद्युपासन्ति धीराः- स्ते मुक्तिभाजो भवबन्धमुक्ताः ॥ ३६.१८ ॥

Recitation with translationVaraha Purana 36.18

Transliteration

agotrama­sparśam arūpagandha- manāmanirdeśam ajaṃ vareṇyam | gopendra tvāṃ yady upāsanti dhīrā- ste muktibhājo bhavabandhamuktāḥ || 36.18 ||

Translation

ഹേ ഗോപേന്ദ്രാ! ഗോത്രരഹിതൻ, അസ്പർശൻ, രൂപ-ഗന്ധാതീതൻ, മനസ്സും വാക്കും നിർദേശിക്കാനതീതൻ, അജൻ, വറെണ്യൻ ആയ നിന്നെ ധീരർ ഉപാസിച്ചാൽ, അവർ ഭവബന്ധത്തിൽ നിന്ന് മോചിതരായി മുക്തിഭാജികളാകും.

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Word by Word

• agotrām: without lineage/clan
• agotrām: Karma (कर्म/Qualifier of ‘tvām’)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a+gotra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (Accusative), एकवचन; नञ्-समासार्थक विशेषण

• asparśam: untouchable, without contact
• asparśam: Karma (कर्म/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a+sparśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; नञ्-विशेषण

• arūpagandham: without form and smell
• arūpagandham: Karma (कर्म/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a+rūpa+gandha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; द्वन्द्व-भावे तत्पुरुष/समाहारार्थः (रूपं च गन्धश्च—तयोः अभावः)

• anāmanirdeśam: not describable by name
• anāmanirdeśam: Karma (कर्म/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a+nāman+nirdeśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; नञ् + षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (नाम्नः निर्देशः)

• ajam: unborn
• ajam: Karma (कर्म/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: aja (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषण

• vareṇyam: worthy of choice/veneration
• vareṇyam: Karma (कर्म/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vareṇya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषण

• gopendra: O lord of the cowherds
• gopendra: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gopa+indra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन, एकवचन

• tvām: you
• tvām: Karma (कर्म/Object of ‘upāsanti’)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tvad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: मध्यमपुरुष-सर्वनाम, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• yadi: if
• yadi: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Condition marker)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yadi (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; शर्तसूचक (conditional particle)

• upāsanti: worship, revere
• upāsanti: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: upa+ās (आस् धातु)
• Form: लट्, प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन; परस्मैपद

• dhīrāḥ: the steadfast/wise
• dhīrāḥ: Kartā (कर्ता/Subject of ‘upāsanti’)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dhīra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन

• te: they
• te: Kartā (कर्ता/Subject of implied ‘bhavanti’)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; संकेतक सर्वनाम

• muktibhājaḥ: sharers of liberation
• muktibhājaḥ: Kartā (कर्ता/Predicate noun)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mukti+bhāj (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (मुक्तेः भाजः = मुक्तिं भजन्ति/भागिनः)

• bhavabandhamuktāḥ: freed from the bondage of existence
• bhavabandhamuktāḥ: Kartā (कर्ता/Adjectival predicate)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: bhava+bandha+mukta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (भवबन्धात् मुक्ताः)

Speaker

Varāha (default dialogue framework)

Tags

• Classical Literature
• Purāṇic Sanskrit
• Vaiṣṇavism
• Mokṣa-śāstra (Liberation discourse)

FAQs

What is the historical significance of this verse?

It exemplifies a Purāṇic synthesis of devotion (upāsanā) with philosophically apophatic language (describing the ultimate as beyond sense, mind, and naming), reflecting wider early-medieval Sanskrit theological and mokṣa-oriented discourse.

Which geographic location is identified?

No specific geographic site is named in this verse; its focus is theological and soteriological rather than on sacred geography.

What is the primary ethical instruction?

The verse promotes disciplined contemplation/worship by the dhīra (steadfast wise), presenting liberation as the outcome of sustained orientation toward the highest principle beyond sensory and conceptual limitation.