Varaha Purana 125.128 — Adhyaya 125, Shloka 128
The Cycle of Māyā
Illusory Causation and Perceptual Reversal
गम्यागम्यं न जानाति मायाजालेन मोहितः ॥ पञ्चाशद्वर्षके काले मया ख्यातः स ब्राह्मणः
gamyāgamyaṃ na jānāti māyājālena mohitaḥ || pañcāśadvarṣake kāle mayā khyātaḥ sa brāhmaṇaḥ
เมื่อถูกตาข่ายแห่งมายาหลอกลวง เขาย่อมไม่รู้ว่าอะไรควรเข้าไปหาและอะไรไม่ควรเข้าไปหา ในกาลห้าสิบปีนั้น พราหมณ์ผู้นั้นเราได้รู้จัก (ว่าเป็นพราหมณ์)
Narrator/Varāha (default dialogue frame; narrative statement)
Varaha Avatara Context: {"is_varaha_focus":true}
Bhu Devi Dialogue: {"is_dialogue":true,"speaker_role":"instructor","bhu_devi_state":"curious"}
Mathura Mandala: {"is_mathura_related":false}
Dharma Shastra: {"has_dharma_rule":true,"topic":"prayaschitta","instruction_summary":"Delusion by māyā destroys viveka (knowing what is fit/unfit to approach); therefore one must cultivate discernment and corrective discipline to avoid forbidden acts and harmful associations.","karmic_consequence":"With discernment, one avoids downfall; without it, one repeatedly chooses the unapproachable (agamyam), accruing sin and suffering—here marked by a long period (fifty years) of misrecognized life-course."}
Vrata Mahatmya: {"has_vrata":false}
Cosmic Boar Symbolism: {"has_symbolism":true,"symbolic_interpretation":"Māyā is portrayed as a ‘net’ (jāla) that entangles cognition; Varāha as revealer cuts through the net by restoring viveka—echoing the avatāra’s broader function of lifting Earth from the abyss, now as lifting the mind from delusion.","yajna_varaha_imagery":"Implicit: the ‘net’ of māyā contrasts with the ‘order’ of yajña/dharma; discernment is the inner yajña that separates pure/impure offerings (gamyāgamyam).","vedantic_connection":"Avidyā as cognitive superimposition; viveka as the means to mokṣa; time (fifty years) underscores saṃsāric drift when discrimination is absent."}
Philosophical Teaching: {"has_teaching":true,"teaching_type":"discernment (viveka) under māyā","core_concept":"Māyā entangles the mind so it cannot distinguish the fit from the unfit; spiritual progress requires restoring discrimination over long habitual time.","practical_application":"Adopt practices that sharpen viveka: satsanga, śāstra-study, daily self-audit of ‘gamyāgamyam’ (people/places/actions), and timely atonement when one errs."}
Subject Matter: ["Ethics","Māyā and discernment","Narrative time"]
Primary Rasa: śānta
Secondary Rasa: bhayānaka
Type: ethical-psychological landscape
Related Themes: 125.125.7 on inquiry into māyā; 125.125.8 on the suffering that follows delusion
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A human figure ensnared in a translucent net labeled ‘māyā’, reaching toward forbidden objects while missing the right path; above/nearby Varāha/Viṣṇu stands as the clarifying presence, and a ‘fifty-year’ arc is shown as a circular time-band.","item_prompts":["net/mesh motif around the figure","two paths (gamyam vs agamyam)","forbidden lure objects","Varāha/Viṣṇu as guide with light","time-wheel or band marked ‘50’","gesture of instruction (abhaya/varada)"],"kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural: stylized māyā-net in pale lines over dark ground, central trapped figure, Varāha/Viṣṇu luminous and instructive, circular time-band motif, strong color blocks.","tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore: gold-highlighted net pattern, central moral tableau with two paths, deity with ornate halo, embossed time-wheel border.","mysore_prompt":"Mysore: refined allegory—soft net overlay, subtle two-path composition, gentle divine radiance, elegant time-band detail.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari: narrative allegory with clean lines, net as delicate white lattice, two-path hillside, small deity figure radiating light, minimal time-wheel icon."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"admonitory yet steady","suggested_raga":"Kalyani","pace":"medium","voice_tone":"firm, clarifying"}
FAQs
It shows a common Purāṇic ethical theme: delusion undermines practical discernment, expressed through the technical pair gamya/agamya.
No location is named in this verse.
Discernment (knowing what to pursue or avoid) is portrayed as vulnerable to delusion; ethical life requires clarity against māyā-driven confusion.
Ask anything about this verse
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