Varaha Purana 183.7: Adhyaya 183, Shloka 7
Installation of a Clay Icon (Mṛnmayārcā) and the Ritual Protocol of Worship
Uttara Bhāga · Modes of Worship (Domestic and Symbolic Forms)
गृहं चालोच्य कश्चिन्मां पूजयेत्कामनापरः ॥ पूजयेद्यदि वा चक्रं मम तेजोंऽशसम्भवम् ॥
gṛhaṃ cālocya kaścin māṃ pūjayet kāmanāparaḥ || pūjayed yadi vā cakraṃ mama tejoṃśa-sambhavam ||
gRRihaM chAlochya kashchinmAM pUjayetkAmanAparaH || pUjayedyadi vA chakraM mama tejoMshasambhavam
Rozważając okoliczności własnego gospodarstwa domowego, osoba nastawiona na pożądany rezultat może mnie czcić; lub alternatywnie, można czcić czakrę, zrodzoną z cząstki mojej blasku.
Sandhi Notes
- चालोच्य = च + आलोच्य
- कश्चिन्माम् = कश्चित् + माम्
- पूजयेत्कामनापरः = पूजयेत् + कामनापरः
- तेजोंऽशसम्भवम् = तेजः + अंशसम्भवम् (visarga→o, then ’)
Varāha
The Lord may be worshipped directly or through an empowered symbol (cakra) derived from his tejas; dharma adapts to one’s station and capacity.
Set up feasible household worship; if a full icon is difficult, establish cakra-pūjā as a valid, focused practice.
Varāha gives practical options: worship him considering household constraints, or worship his cakra as an emanation of his tejas.
The cakra as tejas-aṃśa signifies the Lord’s immanent power: worship may be directed to the personal form or to an empowered emblem (āyudha) without loss of divinity.
Cakra as concentrated tejas (sacrificial fire-like radiance) functioning as a portable locus of the deity’s presence; emblem-worship parallels yajña’s use of empowered implements.
Supports the idea of one Brahman/Īśvara manifesting through nāma-rūpa and śakti; upāsanā can take form (mūrti) or symbol (pratīka) while aiming at the same Lord.
One may worship Varāha according to household circumstance and desired aims; alternatively, worship the cakra, an embodiment born from his radiance.
Appropriate, feasible worship sustains religious life and yields desired fruits (kāmya); neglecting feasible alternatives is implicitly a loss of opportunity for merit.
Foreshadows Vaiṣṇava iconography central to later Kṛṣṇa devotion (cakra as Viṣṇu’s emblem), but no explicit Kṛṣṇa mention.
Varāha Purāṇa 183.3–6 (image-making, materials, motives)
FAQs
It indicates multiple legitimate ritual objects (deity and emblem) and acknowledges household context, reflecting adaptable religious practice in textual tradition.
No geographic location is identified; “gṛha” refers to domestic setting generally.
To calibrate practice to one’s circumstances while recognizing that intention (kāmanā) can shape ritual choice.
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