Varaha Purana 2.23: Adhyaya 2, Shloka 23

Cosmogony and the Ninefold Creation: Rudra’s Origin and the Prelude to the Sāvitrī–Veda Narrative

Devanagari script

इदं चोदाहरन्त्यत्र श्लोकं नारायणं प्रति । ब्रह्मस्वरूपिणं देवं जगतः प्रभवाप्ययम् ॥ २.२३ ॥

Sanskrit recitationVaraha Purana 2.23

Transliteration

idaṁ codāharanty atra ślokaṁ nārāyaṇaṁ prati | brahmasvarūpiṇaṁ devaṁ jagataḥ prabhavāpyayam || 2.23 ||

Translation

ఇక్కడ నారాయణుని ఉద్దేశించి ఈ శ్లోకమును కూడా ఉదాహరిస్తారు—“బ్రహ్మస్వరూపుడైన దేవుడు, జగత్తుకు ఉద్భవమూ లయమూ ఆయనే.”

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Word by Word

• idam: this
• idam: Karta (कर्ता) / Vishaya (विषय)
• Type: Noun
• Root: idam (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napumsaka (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Prathamā (प्रथमा) Ekavacana; demonstrative pronoun

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Conjunction particle (समुच्चय-अव्यय)

• udāharanti: they cite / they quote
• udāharanti: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ud-ā-√hṛ (उद्+आ+हृ धातु)
• Form: Laṭ-lakāra (लट्, Present), Prathama-puruṣa (प्रथमपुरुष), Bahuvacana; Parasmaipada

• atra: here
• atra: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atra (अव्यय)
• Form: Adverb of place (देशवाचक-अव्यय)

• ślokam: a verse
• ślokam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śloka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Pumliṅga (पुंलिङ्ग), Dvitīyā (द्वितीया) Ekavacana

• nārāyaṇam: Nārāyaṇa
• nārāyaṇam: Karma (कर्म) / Pratiyogin (प्रत्ययोगिन्) with prati
• Type: Noun
• Root: nārāyaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Pumliṅga, Dvitīyā Ekavacana; proper name

• prati: towards / addressed to
• prati: Sampradāna/Prati (सम्प्रदान/प्रति-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: prati (अव्यय)
• Form: Preposition/indeclinable governing accusative (उपसर्गसदृश-अव्यय)

• brahma-svarūpiṇam: having Brahman as (his) form
• brahma-svarūpiṇam: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: brahman (प्रातिपदिक) + svarūpin (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Tatpuruṣa (षष्ठी/कर्मधारय-प्राय) compound; Pumliṅga, Dvitīyā Ekavacana; qualifying devaṁ

• devam: the god
• devam: Karma (कर्म) (appositional to nārāyaṇam)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Pumliṅga, Dvitīyā Ekavacana

• jagataḥ: of the world
• jagataḥ: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jagat (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napumsaka, Ṣaṣṭhī (षष्ठी) Ekavacana

• prabhava-apyayam: origin and dissolution
• prabhava-apyayam: Karma (कर्म) (predicate/apposition to devaṁ)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prabhava (प्रातिपदिक) + apyaya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Dvandva compound; Napumsaka, Dvitīyā Ekavacana; (prabhavaḥ ca apyayaḥ) as a single notion

Speaker

Varāha (default dialogue framework; explicit speaker not stated in the excerpt)

Tags

• Classical Literature
• Purāṇa
• Vaiṣṇavism
• Sanskrit Philology
• Cosmology

FAQs

What is the historical significance of this verse?

It exemplifies a common Purāṇic compositional feature: embedding short hymnic citations (śloka-quotations) that articulate a widely shared theological-cosmological formula—Nārāyaṇa as both transcendent (Brahman-nature) and cosmic principle (origin and dissolution).

Which geographic location is identified?

No geographic location is named in this verse; the content functions as a theological invocation rather than a sacred-geography marker.

What is the primary ethical instruction?

The verse does not present a direct ethical injunction; its primary philosophical instruction is doctrinal framing—identifying the divine principle (Nārāyaṇa) as Brahman-like in nature and as the cosmic source and endpoint.