Varaha Purana 175.3: Adhyaya 175, Shloka 3

The Sanctity of the Kṛṣṇagaṅgā Pilgrimage-Ford and the Account of the Brahmin Vasu’s Daughter

Uttara Bhāga · Toponymy: Kṛṣṇāṅga and the Vyāsa tradition near Mathurā

Devanagari script

सोमवैकुण्ठयोर्मध्ये कृष्णाङ्गेति कथ्यते ॥ यत्रातप्यत स व्यासो मथुरायां स्थितोऽमलः ॥

Recitation with translationVaraha Purana 175.3

Transliteration

somavaikuṇṭhayor madhye kṛṣṇāṅgeti kathyate || yatrātapyata sa vyāso mathurāyāṁ sthito 'malaḥ ||

ITRANS transliteration

Translation

ระหว่างโสมะและไวกุณฐะ กล่าวกันว่ามีสถานที่ชื่อ “กฤษณางคะ” ณ ที่นั้น ฤๅษีวยาสะผู้บริสุทธิ์ ผู้พำนัก ณ มถุรา ได้บำเพ็ญตบะ

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Word by Word

• सोमवैकुण्ठयोः: of Soma and Vaikuṇṭha
• Type: Noun
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/षष्ठी), द्विवचन; समासः द्वन्द्वः (सोमश्च वैकुण्ठश्च)
• Role: सम्बन्ध (षष्ठी/Genitive relation)
• Root: सोम + वैकुण्ठ (प्रातिपदिक)

• मध्ये: in the middle
• Type: Noun
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/सप्तमी), एकवचन; अव्ययीभावार्थे ‘मध्ये’ = in the middle
• Role: अधिकरण (अधिकरण/Locative)
• Root: मध्य (प्रातिपदिक)

• कृष्णाङ्गा: (a place/river) named Kṛṣṇāṅgā
• Type: Noun
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; कर्मधारयः (कृष्णम् अङ्गम् यस्याः/कृष्णा अङ्गा)
• Role: कर्ता (कर्ता/Subject)
• Root: कृष्ण + अङ्गा (प्रातिपदिक)

• इति: thus
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: उद्धरणसूचक-अव्यय (quotative particle)
• Role: सम्बन्ध (वाक्य-सम्बन्ध/Quotation marker)
• Root: इति (अव्यय)

• कथ्यते: is called / is said
• Type: Verb
• Form: लट् (Present), कर्मणि प्रयोग (Passive), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन
• Role: क्रिया (क्रिया/Verb)
• Root: कथ् (धातु)

• यत्र: where
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: स्थानवाचक-अव्यय (relative adverb: where)
• Role: अधिकरण (स्थान/Locative sense)
• Root: यत्र (अव्यय)

• आतप्यत: performed austerity / did penance
• Type: Verb
• Form: लुङ् (Aorist), आत्मनेपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन; ‘आ-’ उपसर्ग
• Role: क्रिया (क्रिया/Verb)
• Root: तप् (धातु)

• सः: he
• Type: Noun
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; सर्वनाम
• Role: कर्ता (कर्ता/Subject)
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)

• व्यासः: Vyāsa
• Type: Noun
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन
• Role: कर्ता (कर्ता/Subject)
• Root: व्यास (प्रातिपदिक)

• मथुरायाम्: in Mathurā
• Type: Noun
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/सप्तमी), एकवचन
• Role: अधिकरण (अधिकरण/Locative)
• Root: मथुरा (प्रातिपदिक)

• स्थितः: staying / situated
• Type: Verb
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (past passive participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; ‘स्थित’ = having stayed/being situated
• Role: कर्ता-विशेषण (कर्तृविशेषण/Predicate adjective)
• Root: स्था (धातु) + क्त (प्रत्यय)

• अमलः: pure, spotless
• Type: Adjective
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; विशेषणम् (qualifies व्यासः)
• Role: कर्ता-विशेषण (कर्तृविशेषण/Qualifier)
• Root: अमल (प्रातिपदिक)

Sandhi Notes

• सोमवैकुण्ठयोर्मध्ये = सोमवैकुण्ठयोः + मध्ये
• कृष्णाङ्गेति = कृष्णाङ्गा + इति
• यत्रातप्यत = यत्र + आतप्यत
• स्थितोऽमलः = स्थितः + अमलः

Speaker and setting

Adbhuta and Shanta rasaSetting: Sacred city and sacred sub-site/toponym

Speaker

Varāha (continued narration)

Bhu Devi and Varaha

In this verse

Varaha teaches her

Her state of mind

Curious

The teaching

Kind of teaching

Purity through tapas and place

Subjects

Sacred GeographyToponymyHeritage SitesAscetic Practice

Core idea

Austerity (tapas) performed by realized sages consecrates geography; ‘amalatva’ (untaintedness) is both inner state and place-quality.

In practice

When visiting Mathurā-tīrthas, cultivate tapas-like restraint (simplicity, truthfulness, regulated senses) to align with the site’s consecrated memory.

The Varaha avatara

With the Earth

Varāha continues mapping sacred topography for Bhūdevī, naming an intermediate locale (Kṛṣṇāṅga) and situating Vyāsa’s tapas at Mathurā.

Mathura and Krishna

Cross references

Tags

• Classical Literature
• Purāṇic Studies
• Ancient Geography
• Heritage Sites

FAQs

What is the historical significance of this verse?

It preserves toponymic memory (Kṛṣṇāṅga; Soma; Vaikuṇṭha) and links it to Vyāsa and Mathurā, indicating how Purāṇas anchored authority in specific landscapes.

Which geographic location is identified?

Mathurā is explicitly mentioned (modern Mathura, Uttar Pradesh). The names Soma and Vaikuṇṭha may denote local sacred points or symbolic markers; precise modern identification is uncertain from this fragment alone.

What is the primary ethical instruction?

Austerity (tapas) is presented as a disciplined pursuit situated within a cultural landscape, emphasizing self-restraint and purposeful dwelling.