Varaha Purana 116.17 — Adhyaya 116, Shloka 17
An Exposition on the Causes of Happiness and Suffering
केचित्तृणेषु शेरन्ते ततो दुःखतरं नु किम् ॥ सुरूपो दृश्यते कश्चित्पुरुषश्चात्मकर्मभिः
kecit tṛṇeṣu śerante tato duḥkhataraṃ nu kim || surūpo dṛśyate kaścit puruṣaś cātma-karmabhiḥ
Alguns se deitam sobre a relva—que dor poderia ser maior do que essa? E vê-se certo homem de bela aparência, pela força de seus próprios atos.
Varāha (default, instructional voice)
Varaha Avatara Context: {"is_varaha_focus":true,"aspect_highlighted":"None","boar_form_detail":"None","earth_interaction":"None"}
Bhu Devi Dialogue: {"is_dialogue":false,"speaker_role":"instructor","bhu_devi_state":"None","key_question":"None"}
Mathura Mandala: {"is_mathura_related":false,"specific_site":"None","parikrama_context":"None","krishna_connection":"None"}
Dharma Shastra: {"has_dharma_rule":true,"topic":"None","instruction_summary":"Varāha notes that some sleep on grass while others are handsome due to their own deeds, teaching that bodily fortune and hardship are karmic results and not grounds for pride or contempt.","karmic_consequence":"Humility and good conduct refine future embodiment and social regard; vanity and scorn lead to fall, ugliness, and suffering in later births."}
Vrata Mahatmya: {"has_vrata":false,"vrata_name":"None","tithi_month":"None","promised_fruit":"None"}
Cosmic Boar Symbolism: {"has_symbolism":false,"symbolic_interpretation":"None","yajna_varaha_imagery":"None","vedantic_connection":"None"}
Philosophical Teaching: {"has_teaching":true,"teaching_type":"karma and de-identification from the body","core_concept":"Beauty/ugliness and comfort/discomfort belong to the body shaped by past action; the wise do not identify the self with these changing attributes.","practical_application":"Cultivate non-attachment to appearance; treat all with dignity; choose dharmic actions that purify future conditions."}
Subject Matter: ["Ethics","Karma","Human Condition"]
Primary Rasa: śānta
Secondary Rasa: karuṇa
Type: None
Related Themes: Varāha Purāṇa 116.19 (ugliness and learning)
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A roadside/forest-edge scene: a destitute person sleeps on a bed of grass, while nearby a handsome man stands confidently—both framed as outcomes of unseen karma under Varāha’s moral narration.","item_prompts":["grass bedding","simple forest/field backdrop","contrasting physiques (gaunt sleeper vs handsome figure)","subtle divine witnessing motif"],"kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural, stylized foliage and rhythmic lines; emphasize contrast through posture and costume; keep expressions serene, didactic.","tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore, gold accents on the handsome figure’s ornaments; muted earth tones for the grass-sleeper; decorative border with dharmic symbols (conch/discus as moral frame).","mysore_prompt":"Mysore, soft modeling of faces; detailed grass texture; balanced composition conveying calm instruction.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari, lyrical landscape with a small grass-bed figure and a well-dressed handsome man; fine linework and gentle colors."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"calm, philosophical","suggested_raga":"Yaman","pace":"medium","voice_tone":"even, explanatory"}
FAQs
It exemplifies a karmic explanatory model for visible differences in human life (comfort, appearance), typical of Purāṇic ethical narration.
No geographic identifier appears in this verse.
To interpret social and bodily fortune as contingent and ethically conditioned (linked, in the text’s framework, to one’s own actions).
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