Varaha Purana 98.30: Adhyaya 98, Shloka 30

Chapter on the Sacred Hill Episode: Satyatapā and the Marvel of Varāha

Pūrva Bhāga · Pilgrimage conduct and honoring of sages

Devanagari script

पृथ्वीं प्रदक्षिणीकृत्य तीर्थहेतोर्विचक्षण ॥ तेन चासौ महाभक्त्या पूजितो मुनिपुङ्गवः ॥

Recitation with translationVaraha Purana 98.30

Transliteration

pṛthvīṁ pradakṣiṇīkṛtya tīrthahetor vicakṣaṇa || tena cāsau mahābhaktyā pūjito muni-puṅgavaḥ ||

ITRANS transliteration

Translation

తీర్థార్థంగా భూమిని ప్రదక్షిణ చేసి, ఆ వివేకి మహాభక్తితో ఆ మునిపుంగవుని పూజించాడు।

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Word by Word

• pṛthvīm: the earth
• Type: Noun
• Form: Strīliṅga, Dvitīyā Ekavacana
• Role: Karma (कर्म)
• Root: pṛthvī (प्रातिपदिक)

• pradakṣiṇī-kṛtya: having circumambulated
• Type: Verb
• Form: Absolutive/Gerund (क्त्वा/ल्यप्): kṛtya = having done; with object pṛthvīm: ‘having circumambulated’
• Role: Pūrvakāla-kriyā (पूर्वकाल-क्रिया)
• Root: pradakṣiṇī (प्रातिपदिक) + √kṛ (कृ धातु)

• tīrtha-hetoḥ: for the sake of pilgrimage
• Type: Noun
• Form: Puṁliṅga, Pañcamī (Ablative/पञ्चमी) Ekavacana; tatpuruṣa: ‘tīrthasya hetuḥ’ (cause/purpose of pilgrimage)
• Role: Hetu (हेतु)
• Root: tīrtha (प्रातिपदिक) + hetu (प्रातिपदिक)

• vicakṣaṇa: O discerning one
• Type: Noun
• Form: Puṁliṅga, Sambodhana (Vocative/सम्बोधन) Ekavacana (addressing someone)
• Role: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Root: vicakṣaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)

• tena: by him
• Type: Noun
• Form: Puṁliṅga/Napuṁsaka, Tṛtīyā Ekavacana; pronoun
• Role: Karaṇa / Kartṛ (करण/कर्ता in passive)
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)

• ca: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: Samuccaya-nipāta
• Role: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Root: ca (अव्यय)

• asau: he
• Type: Noun
• Form: Puṁliṅga, Prathamā Ekavacana; pronoun
• Role: Karta (कर्ता)
• Root: adas (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)

• mahā-bhaktyā: with great devotion
• Type: Noun
• Form: Strīliṅga, Tṛtīyā Ekavacana; karmadhāraya: ‘great devotion’
• Role: Karaṇa (करण)
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + bhakti (प्रातिपदिक)

• pūjitaḥ: was worshipped/honoured
• Type: Verb
• Form: Kta (क्त) PPP; Puṁliṅga Prathamā Ekavacana; passive predicate ‘was worshipped’
• Role: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Root: √pūj (पूज् धातु) (कृदन्त)

• muni-puṅgavaḥ: the foremost of sages
• Type: Noun
• Form: Puṁliṅga, Prathamā Ekavacana; tatpuruṣa: ‘munīnāṁ puṅgavaḥ’ (best among sages)
• Role: Karta (कर्ता)
• Root: muni (प्रातिपदिक) + puṅgava (प्रातिपदिक)

Sandhi Notes

• tīrthahetor = tīrtha-hetoḥ
• cāsau = ca + asau
• muni-puṅgavaḥ is a genitive tatpuruṣa (‘best of sages’). pradakṣiṇīkṛtya is a gerund construction with √kṛ

Speaker and setting

Bhakti and Vira rasaSetting: Cosmic geography / pilgrimage landscape

Speaker

Narrator

The teaching

Kind of teaching

Practice-oriented devotion

Subjects

GeographyHeritage SitesEthics

Core idea

Pilgrimage is not mere travel; it is disciplined reverence (pradakṣiṇā) oriented to tīrtha-darśana and culminating in worship of the spiritually eminent.

In practice

When undertaking yātrā, prioritize tīrtha-intent (hetoḥ), ethical conduct, and service to saints/teachers rather than tourism or display.

Dharma

Cross references

Tags

• Classical Literature
• Purāṇic Sacred Geography
• Pilgrimage Studies
• Cultural Heritage

FAQs

What is the historical significance of this verse?

It attests to pan-Indic pilgrimage imagination—circumambulation of the earth and tīrtha networks—useful for reconstructing cultural geographies in premodern literature.

Which geographic location is identified?

The verse references tīrthas in general but does not name a specific site; it gestures to a network rather than a single location.

What is the primary ethical instruction?

It links travel for heritage-sacred purposes with humility and reverence toward learned ascetics, emphasizing respectful conduct in pilgrimage contexts.