Varaha Purana 196.8 — Adhyaya 196, Shloka 8
Description of the City of Dharmarāja
Yama
सर्वजीवैस्तथाकीर्णं तस्य राज्ञः पुरोत्तमम् ॥ क्वचिद्युद्धं क्वचिद्द्वन्द्वं तेन बद्धो यमालये
sarva-jīvais tathākīrṇaṁ tasya rājñaḥ purottamam || kvacid yuddhaṁ kvacid dvandvaṁ tena baddho yamālaye
นครอันประเสริฐของพระราชานั้นเต็มไปด้วยสรรพสัตว์นานาประการ ที่หนึ่งมีศึก ที่หนึ่งมีการประลองเดี่ยว; ด้วยเหตุนั้นเขาจึงถูกผูกมัดในสำนักพระยม
Varāha (default dialogue frame)
Varaha Avatara Context: {"is_varaha_focus":false,"aspect_highlighted":"None","boar_form_detail":"None","earth_interaction":"None"}
Bhu Devi Dialogue: {"is_dialogue":false,"speaker_role":"instructor","bhu_devi_state":"None","key_question":"None"}
Mathura Mandala: {"is_mathura_related":false,"specific_site":"None","parikrama_context":"None","krishna_connection":"None"}
Dharma Shastra: {"has_dharma_rule":true,"topic":"None","instruction_summary":"Violence and antagonistic conduct (battle/duel) generate binding karmic results leading to Yama’s realm.","karmic_consequence":"Engaging in adharmic conflict binds one to post-mortem suffering/constraint under Yama’s jurisdiction."}
Vrata Mahatmya: {"has_vrata":false,"vrata_name":"None","tithi_month":"None","promised_fruit":"None"}
Cosmic Boar Symbolism: {"has_symbolism":false,"symbolic_interpretation":"None","yajna_varaha_imagery":"None","vedantic_connection":"None"}
Philosophical Teaching: {"has_teaching":true,"teaching_type":"karma-ethics","core_concept":"Karma is binding (bandha): actions, especially violent/hostile ones, mature into experiential captivity in post-mortem states.","practical_application":"Restrain aggression; pursue dharmic dispute-resolution and self-control to avoid karmic bondage."}
Subject Matter: ["Ethics","Cosmology"]
Primary Rasa: bhayanaka
Secondary Rasa: raudra
Type: city and infernal/afterlife realm
Related Themes: Varāha Purāṇa 196.9 (varied experiences by karma); Varāha Purāṇa 196.11 (gross/subtle beings seen by deeds)
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A split-scene moral panorama: within the city, pockets of battle and formal duels; in the background/upper register, the shadow of Yama’s abode signifying karmic binding.","item_prompts":["warriors clashing","paired duelists","city walls","dark looming Yama realm motif","chains/ropes as ‘bandha’ symbol"],"kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural: dynamic combat vignettes in the lower band; above, a stylized dark Yamālaya with guardian figures, strong reds/blacks.","tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore: ornate city foreground; symbolic gold-embossed chain motif leading toward a darkened Yama court in the back.","mysore_prompt":"Mysore: refined duel posture, controlled drama; subtle transition from city light to afterlife gloom.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari: narrative compartments; expressive faces in duel; distant, misty Yama realm as moral horizon."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"grave, admonitory","suggested_raga":"Bhairav","pace":"medium-slow","voice_tone":"firm, weighty, with emphasis on ‘Yamālaya’"}
FAQs
It exemplifies Purāṇic moral narration where social actions (here, conflict) are linked to post-mortem consequences framed through Yama’s domain.
“Yamālaya” is a mythic-ethical locale (Yama’s abode), not a terrestrial site; the king’s city remains unnamed here.
Actions involving conflict are presented as causally binding, reinforcing the karmic logic of consequence.
Ask anything about this verse
Curious about the meaning, context, or a word? Ask, and continue the conversation in the Vedapath app.
A free Google sign-in keeps your chat saved across web and the app.
Read Varaha Purana in the Vedapath app
Scan the QR code to open this directly in the app, with audio, word-by-word meanings, and more.