Varaha Purana 51.2: Adhyaya 51, Shloka 2

Recollection of the Dharaṇī-vrata and the Agastya-Bhadrāśva Dialogue on Liberation

Devanagari script

पुष्पभद्रा नदी यत्र शिला चित्रशिला तथा । वटो भद्रवटो यत्र तत्र तस्याश्रमो बभौ । तत्रोपरि महत्तस्य चरितं सम्भविष्यति ॥ ५१.२ ॥

Recitation with translationVaraha Purana 51.2

Transliteration

puṣpabhadrā nadī yatra śilā citraśilā tathā | vaṭo bhadravaṭo yatra tatra tasyāśramo babhau | tatropari mahat tasya caritaṃ saṃbhaviṣyati || 51.2 ||

Translation

Di tempat mengalirnya sungai Puṣpabhadrā, dan adanya batu-batu bernama Śilā serta Citraśilā; di tempat berdirinya pokok beringin yang dikenali sebagai Bhadravaṭa—di situlah terwujud pertapaannya. Di atas tempat itu, kisah agung tentang perbuatannya akan berlaku.

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Word by Word

• puṣpabhadrā: (proper noun) Puṣpabhadrā River

• nadī: river

• yatra: where

• śilā: rock/stone (also a proper-name here)

• citraśilā: Citraśilā (variegated/remarkable rock

• tathā: and also

• vaṭaḥ: banyan tree

• bhadravaṭaḥ: Bhadravaṭa (auspicious banyan

• tatra: there

• tasya: of him/his

• āśramaḥ: hermitage/ascetic dwelling

• babhau: shone/appeared/came to be

• tatra-upari: upon that place/thereafter (context-dependent)

• mahat: great

• caritam: deeds/biographical account

• saṃbhaviṣyati: will occur/come to pass

Speaker

Varāha (default dialogue framework; speaker not explicit in fragment)

Tags

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

FAQs

What is the historical significance of this verse?

It exemplifies a common Purāṇic archival technique: anchoring a forthcoming narrative (carita) to identifiable landscape markers (river, rocks, notable tree), which supports the text’s role as a cultural-geographic memory map.

Which geographic location is identified?

The verse names the Puṣpabhadrā River and local landmarks (Śilā, Citraśilā, Bhadravaṭa). A precise modern identification cannot be confirmed from this fragment alone without correlating parallel passages, regional toponymy, and critical editions.

What is the primary ethical instruction?

The verse primarily functions descriptively rather than prescriptively; its philosophical emphasis is on place-based remembrance—linking human conduct and narrative history to the conservation of named natural features as cultural heritage.