Varaha Purana 39.50: Adhyaya 39, Shloka 50

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

Pūrva Bhāga · Dāna-vidhi (Ritual Gifts and Merit Practices)

Devanagari script

यथाविभवसारेण प्रभाते विमले तथा । चतुर्णां ब्राह्मणानां च चतुरो दापयेद् घटान् ॥ ३९.५० ॥

Recitation with translationVaraha Purana 39.50

Transliteration

yathāvibhavasāreṇa prabhāte vimale tathā | caturṇāṃ brāhmaṇānāṃ ca caturo dāpayet ghaṭān || 39.50 ||

ITRANS transliteration

Translation

ശുദ്ധമായ പ്രഭാതത്തിൽ, സ്വന്തം ശേഷിയനുസരിച്ച്, നാല് ബ്രാഹ്മണർക്കു നാല് ഘടങ്ങൾ (ജലകലശങ്ങൾ) ദാനം ചെയ്യിക്കണം।

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Word by Word

• यथा-विभव-सारेण: according to one’s capacity
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: अव्ययीभावसमास; तृतीया-अर्थे क्रियाविशेषण: ‘according to one’s means/wealth-capacity’
• Role: प्रकार (Manner)
• Root: यथा (अव्यय) + विभव (प्रातिपदिक) + सार (प्रातिपदिक)

• प्रभाते: in the morning
• Type: Noun
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, सप्तमी (7th), एकवचन; ‘at dawn/in the morning’
• Role: अधिकरण (Adhikaraṇa/Time-locative)
• Root: प्रभात (प्रातिपदिक)

• विमले: pure/clear
• Type: Adjective
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, सप्तमी (7th), एकवचन; विशेषण (pure/clear) qualifying प्रभाते
• Role: विशेषण (Qualifier)
• Root: विमल (प्रातिपदिक)

• तथा: likewise
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चय/प्रकारार्थक (‘also/likewise’)
• Role: सम्बन्ध (Adverbial)
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)

• चतुर्णाम्: of four
• Type: Adjective
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, षष्ठी (6th), बहुवचन; संख्यावाचक-विशेषण
• Role: सम्बन्ध (Genitive relation)
• Root: चतुर् (संख्याप्रातिपदिक)

• ब्राह्मणानाम्: of Brahmins
• Type: Noun
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, षष्ठी (6th), बहुवचन
• Role: सम्बन्ध (Genitive relation)
• Root: ब्राह्मण (प्रातिपदिक)

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-अव्यय
• Role: समुच्चय (Conjunction)
• Root: च (अव्यय)

• चतुरः: four
• Type: Adjective
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, द्वितीया (2nd), बहुवचन; संख्यावाचक-विशेषण (agreeing with घटान्)
• Role: विशेषण (Qualifier of घटान्)
• Root: चतुर् (संख्याप्रातिपदिक)

• दापयेत्: should have (them) given
• Type: Verb
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन; णिच्-प्रयोजक (causative): ‘should cause to be given’
• Role: क्रिया (Verb)
• Root: दा (धातु)

• घटान्: pots/jars
• Type: Noun
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, द्वितीया (2nd), बहुवचन
• Role: कर्म (Karma/Object)
• Root: घट (प्रातिपदिक)

Sandhi Notes

• yathāvibhavasāreṇa → यथा-विभव-सारेण (अव्ययीभाव)
• दापयेद् → दापयेत् (त् + घ् संधि-पूर्वरूप in recitation)

Speaker and setting

Shanta rasaSetting: Household/temple distribution setting

Speaker

Varāha

The teaching

Kind of teaching

Ethics of proportionate giving

Subjects

EthicsRitual EconomyGift-Giving (Dāna)

Core idea

Dharma is practicable: give in proportion to means (yathā-vibhava) without abandoning the act of giving.

In practice

Set a sustainable giving rule (regular dāna) that matches income/resources; prioritize essentials (water/food) and worthy recipients.

Dharma

Cross references

Tags

• Classical Literature
• Purāṇic Dharma
• Vaishnavism
• Sanskrit Studies

FAQs

What is the historical significance of this verse?

It reflects a common Purāṇic and Dharmaśāstra-era ethic of regulated gift-giving (dāna), emphasizing proportionality to one’s resources (yathā-vibhava) and the social role of brāhmaṇas in ritual economies.

Which geographic location is identified?

No specific geographic location is named in this verse; the setting is temporal and ritual (“in the pure morning”), not topographical.

What is the primary ethical instruction?

To give in a manner proportionate to one’s capacity, expressed through a concrete act of charity: arranging the donation of four water-pots to four brāhmaṇas.