Varaha Purana 6.36 — Adhyaya 6, Shloka 36
The Puṇḍarīkākṣapāraka Hymn and Puṣkara Tīrtha: The Account of King Vasu’s Release from Sin
इदानीं यत् त्वया स्तोत्रं पुण्डरीकाक्षपारकम् । पठितं तत्प्रभावेन विहायाङ्गरुहाण्यहम् । एकीभूतः पुनर्जातो व्याधरूपो नृपोत्तम ॥ ६.३६ ॥
idānīṁ yat tvayā stotraṁ puṇḍarīkākṣa-pārakam | paṭhitaṁ tatprabhāvena vihāyāṅgaruhāṇy aham | ekībhūtaḥ punarjāto vyādha-rūpo nṛpottama || 6.36 ||
इदानीं त्वया पठितं स्तोत्रं पुण्डरीकाक्षपारकं; तत्प्रभावेन अहं अङ्गरुहाणि विहाय, पुनः एकीभूतः, व्याधरूपः पुनर्जातोऽस्मि, नृपोत्तम॥
Varāha (default dialogue framework; speaker not explicit in fragment)
Varaha Avatara Context: {"is_varaha_focus":true,"aspect_highlighted":"None","boar_form_detail":"None","earth_interaction":"None"}
Bhu Devi Dialogue: {"is_dialogue":true,"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":false,"topic":"None","instruction_summary":"None","karmic_consequence":"None"}
Vrata Mahatmya: {"has_vrata":false,"vrata_name":"None","tithi_month":"None","promised_fruit":"None"}
Cosmic Boar Symbolism: {"has_symbolism":true,"symbolic_interpretation":"Stotra-phala is shown as a transformative force that can reshape embodiment and karmic trajectory; devotion acts as a ‘reconstitution’ principle, restoring wholeness (ekībhūta) beyond prior afflictions.","yajna_varaha_imagery":"The hymn to Puṇḍarīkākṣa functions like an inner yajña: sound-offering (vāṅ-maya-havis) purifies the body and redirects rebirth.","vedantic_connection":"Nāma/stotra as upāya: concentrated remembrance aligns the mind with the Supreme, weakening karmic accretions (mala) and enabling a new embodiment consistent with remaining prārabdha."}
Philosophical Teaching: {"has_teaching":true,"teaching_type":"bhakti and karmic transformation","core_concept":"Sincere praise/remembrance of Puṇḍarīkākṣa can remove afflictive ‘growths’ (bodily/karmic) and reconfigure one’s life-course, even if rebirth still occurs.","practical_application":"Adopt regular stotra-pāṭha with focused intent; treat devotion as medicine for inner/outer impurities while accepting that outcomes may unfold through gradual karmic maturation."}
Subject Matter: ["Devotional Literature","Transformation Narrative","Karma and Rebirth","Hymn Efficacy (Stotra-phala)"]
Primary Rasa: adbhuta
Secondary Rasa: shanta
Type: courtly devotional space → wilderness livelihood
Related Themes: 6.6.35 (ritual without smaraṇa is incomplete; here smaraṇa bears fruit); 6.6.32 (continuity after destruction; here reconstitution and new birth)
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A king recites a hymn to Puṇḍarīkākṣa; a diseased/afflicted figure sheds bodily ‘growths’ like husks, becomes whole and radiant, and a second scene hints at rebirth as a hunter with bow in a forest.","item_prompts":["king chanting from palm-leaf or in añjali","Viṣṇu/Puṇḍarīkākṣa icon with lotus-eyes emphasis","afflicted body with visible ‘aṅgaruhāṇi’ falling away","aura of sound-waves from the hymn","transition motif: rebirth as hunter with bow, forest animals"],"kerala_mural_prompt":"Two-register narrative: upper—stotra before Puṇḍarīkākṣa; lower—shedding impurities and hunter rebirth; stylized sound-waves and lotus-eye iconography.","tanjore_prompt":"Central Puṇḍarīkākṣa with gold-leaf halo; devotee/king in prayer; embossed falling ‘growths’ as jeweled fragments; side vignette of hunter in gilded forest frame.","mysore_prompt":"Graceful transformation sequence with soft realism; luminous Viṣṇu presence; delicate depiction of impurities dissolving; subdued forest rebirth scene.","pahari_prompt":"Storybook panels with expressive gestures; minimalistic but vivid transformation; cool green forest for hunter rebirth; emphasis on devotional intimacy."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"uplifting, wondrous","suggested_raga":"Madhyamavati","pace":"medium","voice_tone":"bright, devotional, with a climactic lift on ‘तत्प्रभावेन’ and a grounded close on ‘व्याधरूपो’"}
FAQs
It exemplifies a common Purāṇic narrative device: stotra-phala, where the recitation of a hymn produces an immediate, observable result (bodily change and a shift in existential status), reflecting the text’s didactic emphasis on speech-acts and ritualized praise within Sanskrit literary culture.
No geographic location is named in this verse; the focus is on personal transformation attributed to the hymn’s efficacy rather than on sacred geography.
The verse foregrounds disciplined recitation and reverential speech as transformative practices, presenting moral causality through the idea that intentional, focused praise can catalyze purification and a change in life-condition.
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