Varaha Purana 8.48: Adhyaya 8, Shloka 48

Dialogue on the Ethical Limits of Subsistence and the Five Great Sacrifices

Dharmavyādha, Mātaṅga, and Prasanna

Pūrva Bhāga · Vaiṣṇava Stuti and Cosmological Elements (Bhū-uddhāra thematic frame)

Devanagari script

खात्मेन्दुपृथ्वीपवनाग्निभास्कराः जलं च यस्य प्रभवन्ति मूर्त्तयः । स सर्वदा मे भगवान् सनातनो ददातु शं विष्णुरचिन्त्यरूपधृक् ॥ ८.४८ ॥

Recitation with translationVaraha Purana 8.48

Transliteration

khātmendu-pṛthvī-pavanāgni-bhāskarā jalaṁ ca yasya prabhavanti mūrtayaḥ | sa sarvadā me bhagavān sanātano dadātu śaṁ viṣṇur acintya-rūpa-dhṛk || 8.48 ||

ITRANS transliteration

Translation

യാരുടെ പ്രകട രൂപങ്ങളിൽ നിന്നാണ് ആകാശം, ആത്മാവ്, ചന്ദ്രൻ, ഭൂമി, വായു, അഗ്നി, സൂര്യൻ, ജലം എന്നിവ ഉദ്ഭവിക്കുന്നത്—ആ അചിന്ത്യരൂപധാരിയായ സനാതന ഭഗവാൻ വിഷ്ണു എപ്പോഴും എനിക്ക് മംഗളം നൽകട്ടെ।

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Word by Word

• kha-ātma-indu-pṛthvī-pavana-agni-bhāskarāḥ: ether, self, moon, earth, wind, fire, and sun (as forms)
• Type: Noun
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Bahuvacana (Plural); multi-member dvandva listing elements (ether, self/space? moon, earth, wind, fire, sun)
• Role: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Root: kha + ātman + indu + pṛthvī + pavana + agni + bhāskara (प्रातिपदिक)

• jalam: water
• Type: Noun
• Form: Napुंसकलिङ्ग, Prathamā, Ekavacana
• Role: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Root: jala (प्रातिपदिक)

• ca: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: Avyaya; conjunction
• Role: Samuccaya (समुच्चय/Conjunction)
• Root: ca (अव्यय)

• yasya: of whom / whose
• Type: Noun
• Form: Sarvanāma, Ṣaṣṭhī, Ekavacana, Puṃliṅga/Napuṃsaka
• Role: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Genitive relation)
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)

• prabhavanti: arise / originate
• Type: Verb
• Form: Laṭ lakāra (Present), Prathama puruṣa, Bahuvacana; parasmaipada
• Role: Kriyā (क्रिया/Verbal action)
• Root: pra-√bhū (भू, धातु)

• mūrtayaḥ: forms / embodiments
• Type: Noun
• Form: Strīliṅga, Prathamā, Bahuvacana
• Role: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Root: mūrti (प्रातिपदिक)

• saḥ: he
• Type: Noun
• Form: Sarvanāma, Prathamā, Ekavacana
• Role: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)

• sarvadā: always
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: Avyaya; adverb of time
• Role: Kāla-adhikaraṇa (कालाधिकरण/Temporal)
• Root: sarvadā (अव्यय)

• me: my / for me
• Type: Noun
• Form: Sarvanāma, Ṣaṣṭhī, Ekavacana; enclitic
• Role: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Genitive relation)
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)

• bhagavān: the Blessed Lord
• Type: Noun
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; stem bhagavat → bhagavān (nom. sg.)
• Role: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Root: bhagavat (प्रातिपदिक)

• sanātanaḥ: eternal
• Type: Adjective
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; agrees with bhagavān/saḥ
• Role: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण/Qualifier)
• Root: sanātana (प्रातिपदिक)

• dadātu: may (he) give
• Type: Verb
• Form: Loṭ lakāra (Imperative/benedictive), Prathama puruṣa, Ekavacana; parasmaipada
• Role: Kriyā (क्रिया/Verbal action)
• Root: √dā (दा, धातु)

• śam: peace / welfare
• Type: Noun
• Form: Napुंसकलिङ्ग, Dvitīyā, Ekavacana; object of dadātu
• Role: Karma (कर्म/Object)
• Root: śam (प्रातिपदिक)

• viṣṇuḥ: Viṣṇu
• Type: Noun
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana
• Role: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Root: viṣṇu (प्रातिपदिक)

• acintya-rūpa-dhṛk: bearer of inconceivable forms
• Type: Adjective
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; dhṛk (agent noun) ‘bearing’; tatpuruṣa (‘bearer of inconceivable forms’)
• Role: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण/Qualifier)
• Root: acintya + rūpa + dhṛk (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक; √dhṛ (धातु))

Sandhi Notes

• Compound chain khātmendu-pṛthvī-pavanāgni-bhāskarāḥ is a multi-dvandva list
• viṣṇur acintya- = viṣṇuḥ + acintya- (visarga sandhi before vowel)

Speaker and setting

Shanta and Bhakti rasa

Speaker

Varāha

The teaching

Path

Metaphysics/theology

Subjects

CosmologyTheology (Vaiṣṇava hymnody)MetaphysicsElements (pañca-mahābhūta and luminaries)

Core idea

All elemental principles and celestial regulators arise from the Lord’s manifested powers, yet His true nature remains beyond conceptual grasp.

In practice

Hold a disciplined humility in inquiry (acintya); seek śānti through devotion and recognition of a single source behind nature’s forces.

Symbolism of the boar

Cross references

Tags

• Classical Literature
• Purāṇic Sanskrit
• Vaiṣṇavism
• Cosmological Catalogues

FAQs

What is the historical significance of this verse?

It exemplifies a common Purāṇic literary mode: a concise cosmological catalogue embedded within a devotional-styled benediction, reflecting how metaphysics and praise are interwoven in early medieval Sanskrit compendia.

Which geographic location is identified?

No specific geographic site is named in this verse; the focus is cosmological (elements and celestial bodies) rather than sacred geography.

What is the primary ethical instruction?

Rather than a direct moral rule, the verse conveys a philosophical instruction: to recognize the unity and sourcehood behind natural phenomena and to orient oneself toward well-being (śam) through contemplative acknowledgement of that principle.