Varaha Purana 77.16: Adhyaya 77, Shloka 16
Measurements of Mount Meru, the Boundary Mountains, and the Four Directional Great Trees
तेन चालोकितं वर्षं सर्वद्विपदनायकाः । यस्य नाम्ना समाख्यातो भद्राश्वेति न संशयः ॥ ७७.१६ ॥
tena cālokitaṁ varṣaṁ sarvadvipadanāyakāḥ | yasya nāmnā samākhyāto bhadrāśveti na saṁśayaḥ || 77.16 ||
അവനാൽ ആ വർഷപ്രദേശം ദർശിക്കപ്പെട്ടു; എല്ലാ ദ്വിപദനായകരിലും അത് അവന്റെ നാമത്താൽ തന്നെ ‘ഭദ്രാശ്വ’ എന്നു വിളിക്കപ്പെട്ടു—സംശയമില്ല।
Varāha
Varaha Avatara Context: {"is_varaha_focus":true,"earth_interaction":"Varāha as teacher explains etymic/toponymic naming: the region is called Bhadrāśva from ‘his name’; this is a didactic mapping of sacred geography for Bhū."}
Bhu Devi Dialogue: {"is_dialogue":false,"speaker_role":"instructor","bhu_devi_state":"curious"}
Mathura Mandala: {"is_mathura_related":false,"specific_site":"Bhadrāśva-varṣa (cosmographic region)"}
Dharma Shastra: {"has_dharma_rule":false}
Vrata Mahatmya: {"has_vrata":false}
Cosmic Boar Symbolism: {"has_symbolism":true,"symbolic_interpretation":"Naming geography after a divine/numinous encounter encodes memory into space: cosmography as sacred semiotics—places become mantric markers of divine acts/presences.","yajna_varaha_imagery":"Name-bestowal parallels dīkṣā/saṃskāra: as ritual names consecrate persons, sacred names consecrate regions; ‘no doubt’ (na saṃśayaḥ) gives śruti-like certainty.","vedantic_connection":"Nāma-rūpa: the world is apprehended through name and form; sanctified naming redirects nāma-rūpa toward īśvara-smṛti rather than mere worldly designation."}
Philosophical Teaching: {"has_teaching":true,"teaching_type":"hermeneutics/cosmology","core_concept":"Sacred knowledge organizes space through meaningful names; remembrance is stabilized by toponyms.","practical_application":"Treat sacred place-names as prompts for recollection and ethical comportment; study/recite tīrtha-nāmas as a discipline of memory (smaraṇa)."}
Subject Matter: ["Geography","Cosmology","Heritage Sites"]
Primary Rasa: śānta
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
Type: varṣa/region in cosmography
Related Themes: Varāha Purāṇa cosmography where varṣas are named and characterized
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A teacher-like Varāha indicating a mapped region; a banner/inscription ‘Bhadrāśva’ over a stylized landscape, with human leaders acknowledging the name.","item_prompts":["cosmic map/scroll","Varāha as narrator/teacher gesture","inscribed toponym ‘Bhadrāśva’","figures of human chiefs listening"],"kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural: Varāha in teaching posture; decorative map bands; inscription panel with stylized script motif.","tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore: gold-framed cartouche for the place-name; Varāha haloed, pointing to the region.","mysore_prompt":"Mysore: courtly assembly of ‘dvipada-nāyakāḥ’; refined map-like landscape behind.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari: narrative scene with a sage-like divine guide and attentive kings; soft hills labeled with the sacred name."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"didactic, assured","suggested_raga":"Shankarabharanam","pace":"medium","voice_tone":"measured and declarative, stressing ‘na saṃśayaḥ’"}
FAQs
It preserves a Purāṇic toponym (Bhadrāśva) within a catalog of regions (varṣas), illustrating how names are explained through eponymy—linking place-names to a figure’s name in the narrative tradition.
The verse identifies “Bhadrāśva” as a named varṣa (region) in Purāṇic cosmography; modern scholarship generally treats such varṣas as part of a mytho-geographical schema rather than a single unambiguous modern map location.
No direct ethical injunction is stated; the verse primarily functions as a geographic-etymological note, supporting cultural memory of place-names and the ordering of inhabited regions.
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