Varaha Purana 142.7: Adhyaya 142, Shloka 7

The Greatness of Esoteric Practice: Menstrual Impurity, Mental Equanimity, and Seasonal Conjugal Ethics

Uttara Bhāga · Guhyakarma-māhātmya (Ritual/ethical guidance; purity and conduct)

Devanagari script

स्पृष्टा या रजसा देवि मम कर्मपरायणा ॥ मां संस्पृशन्तु तत्रस्थं यत्र तिष्ठामि सुन्दरि ॥

Recitation with translationVaraha Purana 142.7

Transliteration

spṛṣṭā yā rajasā devi mama karmaparāyaṇā || māṃ saṃspṛśantu tatrasthaṃ yatra tiṣṭhāmi sundari ||

ITRANS transliteration

Translation

या रजसा स्पृष्टा देवि मम कर्मपरायणा, सा सुन्दरि यत्राहं तिष्ठामि तत्रस्थं मां संस्पृशतु।

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Word by Word

• spṛṣṭā: touched
• Type: Verb
• Form: Kta-participle (past passive participle), Strīliṅga (Feminine), Prathamā (Nominative, 1st), Ekavacana (Singular)
• Role: Karta (कर्ता/Subject, with passive sense)
• Root: spṛś (धातु) + kta (कृत्)

• yā: who
• Type: Noun
• Form: Strīliṅga (Feminine), Prathamā (Nominative, 1st), Ekavacana (Singular)
• Role: Karta (कर्ता/Relative subject)
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)

• rajasā: by menstrual impurity / by rajas
• Type: Noun
• Form: Napुंसakaliṅga (Neuter), Tṛtīyā vibhakti (Instrumental, 3rd), Ekavacana (Singular)
• Role: Karaṇa (करण/Instrument)
• Root: rajas (प्रातिपदिक)

• devi: O goddess
• Type: Noun
• Form: Strīliṅga (Feminine), Sambodhana (Vocative), Ekavacana (Singular)
• Role: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन/Address)
• Root: devī (प्रातिपदिक)

• mama: my
• Type: Noun
• Form: Ṣaṣṭhī (Genitive, 6th), Ekavacana (Singular)
• Role: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)

• karmaparāyaṇā: devoted to (proper) action
• Type: Adjective
• Form: Strīliṅga (Feminine), Prathamā (Nominative, 1st), Ekavacana (Singular); tatpuruṣa: karma + parāyaṇā (devoted to duty)
• Role: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण/Qualifier of subject)
• Root: karma-parāyaṇā (प्रातिपदिक)

• mām: me
• Type: Noun
• Form: Dvitīyā (Accusative, 2nd), Ekavacana (Singular)
• Role: Karma (कर्म/Object)
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)

• saṃspṛśantu: let (them) touch
• Type: Verb
• Form: Loṭ-lakāra (Imperative), Prathama-puruṣa (3rd person), Bahuvacana (Plural), Parasmaipada
• Role: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Root: saṃ-spṛś (धातु)

• tatra-stham: (me) being there / situated there
• Type: Adjective
• Form: Puṃliṅga (Masculine), Dvitīyā (Accusative, 2nd), Ekavacana (Singular); avyayībhāva: tatra (indecl.) + stha (standing)
• Role: Karma (कर्म/Object; qualifier of mām)
• Root: tatra-stha (प्रातिपदिक)

• yatra: where
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: Avyaya; deśa-vācaka relative adverb (where)
• Role: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण/Locative sense)
• Root: yatra (अव्यय)

• tiṣṭhāmi: I stand / I remain
• Type: Verb
• Form: Laṭ-lakāra (Present), Uttama-puruṣa (1st person), Ekavacana (Singular), Parasmaipada
• Role: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Root: sthā (धातु)

• sundari: O beautiful one
• Type: Noun
• Form: Strīliṅga (Feminine), Sambodhana (Vocative), Ekavacana (Singular)
• Role: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Root: sundarī (प्रातिपदिक)

Sandhi Notes

• tatra-sthaṃ is avyayībhāva compound

Speaker and setting

Shanta and Vatsalya rasa

Speaker

Varāha

Bhu Devi and Varaha

In this verse

Varaha teaches her

Her state of mind

Curious; seeking clarity on bodily purity and ritual eligibility

What she asks

Under what conditions may a person affected by rajas (ritual impurity/menstrual state) approach/touch and still remain aligned with dharma and devotion?

The teaching

Kind of teaching

Bhakti-ethics / ritual intentionality

Subjects

EthicsPurity DiscourseRitual Conduct

Core idea

Bodily conditions do not by themselves negate spiritual access when conduct and devotion are aligned with the Lord’s injunction.

In practice

Do not self-exclude from prayer/approach solely due to bodily state; prioritize reverence, prescribed conduct, and devotional orientation.

The Varaha avatara

With the Earth

Addresses Bhū-devī directly as 'devi/sundari' while laying down a purity-ethics allowance about touch/approach in his presence.

Dharma

Cross references

Tags

• Classical Literature
• Purāṇic Ethics
• Vaiṣṇavism
• Body and Purity (textual)

FAQs

What is the historical significance of this verse?

It is evidence of internal diversity in purity discourse: the text articulates an allowance framed through devotion and prescribed conduct.

Which geographic location is identified?

No location is specified; “where I stand” is rhetorical rather than topographical.

What is the primary ethical instruction?

The verse prioritizes intention and adherence to ethical/ritual discipline over exclusion based solely on a bodily condition.