Varaha Purana 7.5: Adhyaya 7, Shloka 5
The Sanctity of Gayā: Raibhya’s Encounter and Hymn to Viṣṇu
Gadādhara
सोऽब्रवीद् रैभ्य किं कार्यं तपश्चरसि सुव्रत । एवमुक्त्वा दिवो भूमिं मापयामास वै पुमान् ॥ ७.५ ॥
so 'bravīd raibhya kiṃ kāryaṃ tapaś carasi suvrata | evam uktvā divo bhūmiṃ māpayāmāsa vai pumān || 7.5 ||
അവൻ പറഞ്ഞു—ഹേ സുവ്രതനായ റൈഭ്യാ! എന്ത് കാര്യമെന്നു കരുതി നീ തപസ് അനുഷ്ഠിക്കുന്നു? ഇങ്ങനെ പറഞ്ഞിട്ട് ആ പുരുഷൻ ആകാശത്തിൽ നിന്ന് ഭൂമിയെ അളക്കാൻ തുടങ്ങി।
Varāha (default dialogue framework; speaker not explicit in fragment)
FAQs
It reflects a Purāṇic narrative style where ascetic practice (tapaḥ) is questioned for its intended aim, alongside motifs of cosmic or terrestrial measurement that appear in early Sanskrit cosmographical imagination.
No specific toponym is named in this verse; it references the earth (bhūmi) and the sky/heaven (divaḥ) in a cosmographic sense rather than a localized site.
The verse foregrounds intentionality in ascetic practice: austerity (tapaḥ) is presented as meaningful when linked to a clear purpose (kārya).
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