Varaha Purana 151.14: Adhyaya 151, Shloka 14

The Sacred Greatness of Lohārgala

The ‘Iron-Bolt’ Tīrtha

Uttara Bhāga · Etiology of a Sacred Place (name-giving; kṣetra foundation)

Devanagari script

एवं लोहर्गलं नाम क्षेत्रं चैव मया कृतम् ॥ ततो देवासुरे युद्धे हत्वा त्रिदशकण्टकान् ॥

Recitation with translationVaraha Purana 151.14

Transliteration

evaṁ lohargalaṁ nāma kṣetraṁ caiva mayā kṛtam | tato devāsure yuddhe hatvā tridaśakaṇṭakān ||

ITRANS transliteration

Translation

ดังนี้ เราได้สถาปนาแดนศักดิ์สิทธิ์นามว่า “โลหารคละ” ขึ้น; ต่อมาในสงครามระหว่างเทพกับอสูร ครั้นได้สังหารเหล่าศัตรูผู้เป็นดุจหนามของไตรทศ (เทพสามสิบ) แล้ว (เรื่องราวจึงดำเนินต่อไป)

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Word by Word

• evam: thus
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: Avyaya (अव्यय), manner adverb (प्रकारवाचक)
• Role: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Root: evam (अव्यय)

• loha-argalam: iron barrier/bolt
• Type: Noun
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular (एकवचन); षष्ठी/कर्मधारय-प्राय तत्पुरुष: 'iron-bolt/iron barrier'
• Role: Karma (कर्म)
• Root: loha (प्रातिपदिक) + argala (प्रातिपदिक)

• nāma: named/called
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: Avyaya-like particle (निपात) meaning 'named/called'
• Role: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Root: nāman (प्रातिपदिक) / nāma (अव्यय-प्रयोग)

• kṣetram: field/place
• Type: Noun
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular (एकवचन)
• Role: Karma (कर्म)
• Root: kṣetra (प्रातिपदिक)

• ca: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: Avyaya (अव्यय), conjunction
• Role: Samuccaya (समुच्चय)
• Root: ca (अव्यय)

• eva: indeed
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: Avyaya (अव्यय), emphatic particle
• Role: Avadhāraṇa (अवधारण)
• Root: eva (अव्यय)

• mayā: by me
• Type: Noun
• Form: Pronoun (सर्वनाम), Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Singular (एकवचन)
• Role: Karaṇa (करण)
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)

• kṛtam: made/created
• Type: Verb
• Form: Past passive participle (क्त-प्रत्ययान्त), Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Nominative/Accusative (1st/2nd), Singular (एकवचन); agreeing with kṣetram: 'was made'
• Role: Karma (कर्म)
• Root: kṛ (धातु) + kta (क्त)

• tataḥ: then
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: Avyaya (अव्यय), adverb: 'then'
• Role: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Root: tatas (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक)

• deva-asure: (of) gods and demons
• Type: Adjective
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Locative (7th/सप्तमी), Singular (एकवचन); द्वन्द्व used adjectivally with yuddhe: 'in the war of gods and asuras'
• Role: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Root: deva (प्रातिपदिक) + asura (प्रातिपदिक)

• yuddhe: in battle
• Type: Noun
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Locative (7th/सप्तमी), Singular (एकवचन)
• Role: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Root: yuddha (प्रातिपदिक)

• hatvā: having killed
• Type: Verb
• Form: Absolutive/gerund (क्त्वान्त अव्ययकृदन्त): 'having slain'
• Role: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Root: han (धातु) + ktvā (क्त्वा)

• tridaśa-kaṇṭakān: the tormentors of the gods
• Type: Noun
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Plural (बहुवचन); षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: 'thorns (troubles) of the gods' i.e., tormentors/enemies of the gods
• Role: Karma (कर्म)
• Root: tridaśa (प्रातिपदिक) + kaṇṭaka (प्रातिपदिक)

Sandhi Notes

• lohargalaṁ → loha-argalam
• caiva → ca eva
• devāsure → deva-asure
• tridaśakaṇṭakān is a tatpuruṣa compound

Speaker and setting

Vira and Adbhuta rasaSetting: Kṣetra / tīrtha-site

Speaker

Varāha

Bhu Devi and Varaha

In this verse

Varaha teaches her

Her state of mind

Relieved; sacralized through kṣetra-creation

The teaching

Kind of teaching

Sacred geography theology

Subjects

Heritage SitesMythic etiologyEthics

Core idea

Places become spiritually potent when divine action is remembered and ritually accessed.

In practice

Approach kṣetras with remembrance (smaraṇa) of their founding myth; let pilgrimage be an ethical renewal (removing one’s inner ‘thorns’).

The Varaha avatara

Aspect

Earth rescue

With the Earth

By establishing a kṣetra on Earth (Bhu’s body) and removing burdensome adversaries of the devas, he restores stability to the world

Symbolism of the boar

Mathura and Krishna

Cross references

Tags

• Ancient Geography
• Purāṇic Kṣetra-Māhātmya
• Vaiṣṇavism
• Classical Literature

FAQs

What is the historical significance of this verse?

It is an etiology (origin-and-naming) statement for a kṣetra, a key genre marker in māhātmya sections that link place-names to narrative events.

Which geographic location is identified?

Lohārgala-kṣetra is explicitly identified as the named sacred region established in the narrative.

What is the primary ethical instruction?

The metaphor “thorns of the devas” frames disruptive forces as obstacles to communal order, implying that safeguarding social-cosmic stability is a valued aim.