Varaha Purana 136.56 — Adhyaya 136, Shloka 56

A Sūtra-like Manual of Expiations for Ritual Transgressions

Devanagari script

अन्यच्च ते प्रवक्ष्यामि तच्छृणुष्व वसुन्धरे ॥ वाराहेण तु मांसनेन यस्तु कुर्वीत प्रापणम्

Transliteration

anyac ca te pravakṣyāmi tac chṛṇuṣva vasundhare || vārāheṇa tu māṃsena yas tu kurvīta prāpaṇam

Translation

И еще скажу тебе — выслушай это, о Васундхара. Тот, кто совершил бы подношение с мясом вепря…

Word by Word

• anyat: something else/further

• ca: and

• te: to you

• pravakṣyāmi: I will explain

• tat: that

• śṛṇuṣva: listen

• vasundhare: O Earth (voc.)

• vārāheṇa: with/of boar (adj.)

• tu: but

• māṃsena: with meat

• yaḥ: who

• tu: indeed

• kurvīta: would do/should do

• prāpaṇam: offering/presentation

Speaker

Varāha

Varaha Avatara Context

Varaha Avatara Context: {"is_varaha_focus":true,"aspect_highlighted":"dialogue","boar_form_detail":"None (Varāha referenced via ‘vārāheṇa…māṃsena’—boar-meat)","earth_interaction":"Direct address to Vasundharā (‘listen, O Earth’), continuing ethical instruction"}

Bhu Devi Dialogue

Bhu Devi Dialogue: {"is_dialogue":true,"speaker_role":"instructor","bhu_devi_state":"curious/attentive; positioned as recipient of dharma teaching","key_question":"What is the consequence of making offerings using boar-meat (vārāha-māṃsa)?"}

Mathura Mandala

Mathura Mandala: {"is_mathura_related":false,"specific_site":"None","parikrama_context":"None","krishna_connection":"None"}

Dharma Shastra

Dharma Shastra: {"has_dharma_rule":true,"topic":"prayaschitta","instruction_summary":"Offering/ritual transaction (prāpaṇa) performed with boar-meat is condemned and triggers severe karmic fallout (detailed in following verses).","karmic_consequence":"Leads toward Naraka and degraded rebirth (porcine womb, blindness), as the discourse unfolds in 136.63-65."}

Vrata Mahatmya

Vrata Mahatmya: {"has_vrata":false,"vrata_name":"None","tithi_month":"None","promised_fruit":"None"}

Cosmic Boar Symbolism

Cosmic Boar Symbolism: {"has_symbolism":true,"symbolic_interpretation":"The avatāra’s form is not merely an animal category; treating ‘boar’ as ordinary sacrificial meat collapses the sacred into the profane—an inversion of yajña.","yajna_varaha_imagery":"Implicit contrast: true yajña honors the Lord; using ‘Varāha-meat’ as offering becomes a parody of sacrifice producing bondage.","vedantic_connection":"Distinguishes īśvara-tattva from jāti (species): the divine form is transcendental; ignorance (avidyā) that equates it with edible flesh yields pāpa."}

Philosophical Teaching

Philosophical Teaching: {"has_teaching":true,"teaching_type":"ritual ethics under bhakti","core_concept":"Not all ‘offerings’ are meritorious; intention and object must align with dharma and reverence for the deity.","practical_application":"Avoid offerings involving prohibited/impious substances, especially those symbolically tied to the Lord’s avatāra; choose sāttvika offerings."}

Subject Matter

Subject Matter: ["Ethics"]

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: bhayanaka

Secondary Rasa: karuna

Geographic Context

Type: ritual/social setting

Cross References

Related Themes: Varāha Purāṇa 136.61 (Naraka proportionality); Varāha Purāṇa 136.63-65 (porcine rebirth, blindness, saṃsāra)

Visual Art Cues

Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"Varāha pauses and says ‘I will tell you more’; a ritual scene is implied where someone prepares an offering using boar-meat, while Bhū-devī listens in concern.","item_prompts":["Varāha teaching gesture","Bhū-devī seated/listening","offering tray with meat (kept symbolic, not graphic)","altar fire (agni) as witness","scroll-like sense of ‘further instruction’"],"kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural: frontal Varāha and Bhū-devī; to the side, a small vignette of a yajña-kuṇḍa and an offering plate labeled by iconography; strong reds/greens.","tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore: gold-backed Varāha instructing; miniature ritual vignette with bright textiles and embossed ornaments; fire rendered with gold highlights.","mysore_prompt":"Mysore: elegant courtly composition; subtle depiction of the offering scene; emphasis on didactic calm rather than horror.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari: narrative split-panel—upper: dialogue; lower: rustic ritual setting with a priest and offering, rendered delicately."}

Audio Atmosphere

Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"didactic warning","suggested_raga":"Todi","pace":"medium-slow","voice_tone":"firm, instructive"}

Tags

• Classical Literature
• Vaiṣṇavism
• Purāṇic Ethics
• Ritual Discourse

FAQs

What is the historical significance of this verse?

It preserves a dialogic framing and a catalog-like style of prohibitions/penances, useful for mapping Purāṇic ethical taxonomies.

Which geographic location is identified?

None; the addressee is personified Earth rather than a place-name.

What is the primary ethical instruction?

It introduces an additional caution concerning improper offering substances and their consequences.