Varaha Purana 48.6: Adhyaya 48, Shloka 6

The Kalki Dvādaśī Observance and the Episode of King Viśāla

Devanagari script

पूर्वं राजा विशालोऽभूत् काश्यां पुर्यां महाबलः । गोत्रजैर्हृतराज्योऽसौ गन्धमादनमाविशत् ॥ ४८.६ ॥

Recitation with translationVaraha Purana 48.6

Transliteration

pūrvaṁ rājā viśālo 'bhūt kāśyāṁ puryāṁ mahābalaḥ | gotrajair hṛta-rājyo 'sau gandhamādanam āviśat || 48.6 ||

Translation

മുമ്പ് കാശീപുരിയിൽ ‘വിശാലൻ’ എന്ന മഹാബലവാൻ രാജാവുണ്ടായിരുന്നു. സ്വന്തം ഗോത്രജനങ്ങൾ രാജ്യം കവർന്നതോടെ അദ്ദേഹം ഗന്ധമാദനത്തിലേക്ക് പ്രവേശിച്ചു।

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Word by Word

• pūrvam: formerly; earlier
• pūrvam: Kāla-adhikaraṇa (कालाधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: pūrva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Avyaya, adverb of time (कालवाचक)

• rājā: king
• rājā: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rājan (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Prathamā (nominative), Eka-vacana

• viśālaḥ: Vişāla; broad/great
• viśālaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: viśāla (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Eka-vacana; adjective qualifying rājā

• abhūt: was; became
• abhūt: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: bhū (भू धातु)
• Form: Laṅ-lakāra (लङ्, imperfect/past), Prathama-puruṣa, Eka-vacana, parasmaipada

• kāśyām: in Kāśī (Vārāṇasī)
• kāśyām: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kāśī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Saptamī (locative), Eka-vacana

• puryām: in the city
• puryām: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: purī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Saptamī (locative), Eka-vacana; in apposition to kāśyām

• mahā-balaḥ: very strong; mighty
• mahā-balaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + bala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Eka-vacana; karmadhāraya: 'great in strength'

• gotra-jaiḥ: by his kinsmen/clansmen
• gotra-jaiḥ: Karaṇa (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gotra (प्रातिपदिक) + ja (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Tṛtīyā (instrumental), Bahu-vacana; tatpuruṣa: 'born of the same lineage/clan'

• hṛta-rājyaḥ: deprived of his kingdom
• hṛta-rājyaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: hṛta (हृत, √hṛ/हृ धातु, क्त) + rājya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Eka-vacana; tatpuruṣa: 'whose kingdom has been taken away'

• asau: that (man); he
• asau: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: adas (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Eka-vacana; demonstrative pronoun

• gandhamādanam: Gandhamādana (mountain)
• gandhamādanam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gandha (प्रातिपदिक) + mādana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Dvitīyā (accusative), Eka-vacana; proper noun (mountain), tatpuruṣa: 'that which intoxicates with fragrance'

• āviśat: entered
• āviśat: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ā-viś (आ+विश् धातु)
• Form: Laṅ-lakāra (imperfect), Prathama-puruṣa, Eka-vacana, parasmaipada

Speaker

Varāha (default, speaker not explicit in excerpt)

Tags

• Classical Literature
• Purāṇic Narrative
• Ancient Indian Geography
• Vaishnavism

FAQs

What is the historical significance of this verse?

It preserves a Purāṇic-style memory of royal succession and displacement, using the figure of King Viśāla to frame political instability and exile as a narrative motif within Sanskrit cultural historiography.

Which geographic location is identified?

Kāśī is named explicitly (commonly identified with the Varanasi region). Gandhamādana is a mytho-geographic toponym associated with mountainous terrain in Sanskrit literature, often linked with Himalayan/near-Himalayan sacred landscapes in broader textual traditions.

What is the primary ethical instruction?

The verse foregrounds the vulnerability of political power and the consequences of intra-lineage conflict, implying a philosophical instruction about impermanence of sovereignty and the social costs of factionalism.