Varaha Purana 89.23 — Adhyaya 89, Shloka 23

The Hierarchy of the Trimūrti and the Manifestation of the Goddess Trikalā

Devanagari script

श्रीवराह उवाच । परो नारायणो देवस्तस्माज्जातश्चतुर्मुखः । तस्माद् रुद्रोऽभवद् देवि स च सर्वज्ञतां गतः ॥

Transliteration

śrīvarāha uvāca | paro nārāyaṇo devas tasmāj jātaś caturmukhaḥ | tasmād rudro 'bhavad devi sa ca sarvajñatāṁ gataḥ ||

Translation

Śrī Varāha bersabda: “Dewa Yang Tertinggi ialah Nārāyaṇa; daripadanya lahir yang bermuka empat (Brahmā). Daripadanya juga, wahai Dewi, Rudra terbit, dan baginda mencapai kemahatahuan.”

Word by Word

• śrī-varāhaḥ: Śrī Varāha
• śrī-varāhaḥ: Karta (कर्ता) (speaker tag)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śrī (प्रातिपदिक) + varāha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative Singular; karmadhāraya: “glorious Varāha” (honorific title)

• uvāca: said
• uvāca: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vac (धातु)
• Form: Verb; Liṭ (perfect), Parasmaipada, 3rd person Singular

• paraḥ: supreme
• paraḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: para (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative Singular; adjective qualifying nārāyaṇaḥ

• nārāyaṇaḥ: Nārāyaṇa
• nārāyaṇaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nārāyaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative Singular

• devaḥ: god
• devaḥ: Karta (कर्ता) (apposition)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative Singular; in apposition to nārāyaṇaḥ

• tasmāt: from him/therefrom
• tasmāt: Apādāna (अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Pronoun; Masculine/Neuter, Ablative (पञ्चमी) Singular

• jātaḥ: was born/arose
• jātaḥ: Kriyā (क्रिया) (predicate: “was born”)
• Type: Verb
• Root: jan (धातु) + kta (कृत्)
• Form: Kridanta; past passive participle (क्त); Masculine, Nominative Singular; predicative

• catur-mukhaḥ: the four-faced one (Brahmā)
• catur-mukhaḥ: Karta (कर्ता) (subject of implied ‘was born’)
• Type: Noun
• Root: catur (प्रातिपदिक) + mukha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative Singular; bahuvrīhi: “having four faces” (Brahmā)

• tasmāt: from him/therefrom
• tasmāt: Apādāna (अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Pronoun; Ablative Singular

• rudraḥ: Rudra
• rudraḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rudra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative Singular

• abhavat: came to be/arose
• abhavat: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: bhū (धातु)
• Form: Verb; Laṅ (imperfect), Parasmaipada, 3rd person Singular

• devi: O देवी
• devi: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: devī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Vocative (सम्बोधन) Singular

• saḥ: he
• saḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Pronoun; Masculine, Nominative Singular

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

• sarva-jñatām: omniscience
• sarva-jñatām: Karma (कर्म) (goal attained)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक) + jñatā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Accusative Singular; abstract noun; tatpuruṣa: “omniscience (state of knowing all)”

• gataḥ: attained/gone to
• gataḥ: Kriyā (क्रिया) (predicate: “attained”)
• Type: Verb
• Root: gam (धातु) + kta (कृत्)
• Form: Kridanta; past active participle (क्त, in sense of “gone/attained”); Masculine, Nominative Singular

Speaker

Varāha

Subject Matter

Subject Matter: ["Cosmology","Genealogy of deities (descriptive)","Philosophical hierarchy","Dialogue framework"]

Tags

• Classical Literature
• Purāṇic Narrative
• Vaishnavism
• Cosmogony

FAQs

What is the historical significance of this verse?

It is a concise witness to a Vaiṣṇava-leaning cosmogonic genealogy within the Purāṇic corpus, useful for mapping doctrinal emphases and intertextual parallels.

Which geographic location is identified?

No geographic location is indicated; the content is theological-cosmological.

What is the primary ethical instruction?

Rather than a direct moral injunction, the verse conveys a metaphysical ordering principle—an explanatory framework for cosmic roles and knowledge (sarvajñatā).