Varaha Purana 21.32: Adhyaya 21, Shloka 32
The Disruption of Dakṣa’s Sacrifice, the Hari-Hara Conflict, and the Establishment of Rudra’s Sacrificial Share
Pūrva Bhāga · Pr̥thivī-uddhāra and Cosmological Symbolism
अहोरात्रे पताके द्वे धर्माधर्मे तु दण्डके । शकटं सर्वविद्याश्च स्वयं ब्रह्मादिसारथिः ॥ २१.३३ ॥
ahorātre patāke dve dharmādharme tu daṇḍake | śakaṭaṃ sarvavidyāś ca svayaṃ brahmādisārathiḥ || 21.33 ||
ahorAtre patAke dve dharmAdharme tu daNDake | shakaTaM sarvavidyAshcha svayaM brahmAdisArathiH || 21.33 ||
अहोरात्रे पताके द्वे; धर्माधर्मौ दण्डके द्वौ; शकटं सर्वविद्याः; सारथिः स्वयं ब्रह्मादयः।
Sandhi Notes
- अहोरात्रे → अहः-रात्रे (dvandva)
- धर्माधर्मे → धर्म-अधर्मे (dvandva)
- सर्वविद्याश्च → सर्व-विद्याः + च
- ब्रह्मादिसारथिः → ब्रह्म-आदि-सारथिः
Varāha
Knowledge without dharma is directionless; time and moral polarity are the visible ‘flags and poles’ of embodied existence.
Daily self-audit: track actions by dharma/adharma, regulate routines by day/night discipline, and integrate learning (vidyā) into conduct.
A cosmic chariot allegory: time (day/night) and ethics (dharma/adharma) are structural components of the world-process; knowledge is the vehicle; primordial powers steer.
Banners (patākā) as day/night; poles (daṇḍaka) as dharma/adharma—like ritual supports; the ‘cart’ as vidyā-samūha parallels yajña as a composite of knowledges.
Jīva’s saṃsāric movement is conditioned by guṇa-time and moral polarity; liberation requires right steering—viveka aligning with dharma and ultimately with Brahman-order.
Ethical discernment is framed as governance of the ‘vehicle’ of life: keep dharma as the guiding standard and recognize adharma as the counter-force to be restrained.
Choosing dharma steadies the ‘journey’ and yields auspicious outcomes; indulging adharma destabilizes life’s course and leads to suffering/decline.
Immediate continuation into mantra/weapon symbolism (next verse) strengthens the allegorical register
FAQs
It illustrates a Purāṇic habit of encoding cosmology and ethics through extended metaphor (a cart with banners and poles), reflecting how early Sanskrit narrative literature linked moral order (dharma) with cosmic structure and learned disciplines (vidyā).
No specific geographic toponym is mentioned in this verse; the imagery is primarily cosmological and ethical rather than tied to a site.
The verse frames dharma and adharma as structural forces within lived reality (like supporting poles), implying that moral orientation is foundational to how time (day/night) and human knowledge are meaningfully directed.
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