Varaha Purana 52.5: Adhyaya 52, Shloka 5

The Genealogy of Trivarṇa, Manohvā, and the Akṣa Lineage, with the Construction of the Nine-Gated City

Devanagari script

नवद्बारं पुरं तस्य त्वेकस्तम्भं चतुष्पथम् । नदीसहस्रसङ्कीर्णं जलक्रीत्या समास्थितम् ॥ ५२.५ ॥

Recitation with translationVaraha Purana 52.5

Transliteration

navadbāraṃ puraṃ tasya tv ekastambhaṃ catuṣpatham | nadīsahasrasaṅkīrṇaṃ jalakrītyā samāsthitam || 52.5 ||

Translation

അവന്റെ നഗരം ഒൻപത് വാതിലുകളുള്ളതായിരുന്നു; അതിൽ ഒരു സ്തംഭവും ചതുഷ്പഥവും (നാലുവഴി ചുമടുകൂടൽ) ഉണ്ടായിരുന്നു. ആയിരം നദികളാൽ നിറഞ്ഞു, ജലക്രീഡയ്ക്കുള്ള സ്ഥാനമായി സ്ഥാപിതമായിരുന്നു.

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Word by Word

• navadbāram: nine-gated

• puram: city/fortified town

• tasya: of him/of that

• tu: but/indeed

• eka-stambham: having a single pillar

• catuṣpatham: four-road junction/crossroads

• nadī-sahasra: a thousand rivers

• saṅkīrṇam: filled with/intermixed with

• jala-krītyā: by/for water-play (aquatic recreation)

• samāsthitam: situated/established

Speaker

Varāha

Tags

• Classical Literature
• Purāṇic Studies
• Ancient Geography
• Cultural Heritage

FAQs

What is the historical significance of this verse?

The verse uses standard Purāṇic urban and hydrological motifs—“nine gates,” “crossroads,” and dense river networks—to encode a culturally valued landscape, offering evidence for how sacred geography and idealized city-planning imagery were narrated in Purāṇic literature.

Which geographic location is identified?

No explicit toponym appears in this isolated verse; it describes a city characterized by multiple gates, a central pillar, crossroads, and extensive waterways. Precise identification would require adjacent verses naming the site or ruler.

What is the primary ethical instruction?

Rather than a direct moral injunction, the verse foregrounds water-rich habitation and organized civic space; in an archival reading, it supports a broader Purāṇic valuation of managed waterways and culturally significant riverine environments.