Varaha Purana 210.19 — Adhyaya 210, Shloka 19
Inquiry into Moral Agency (Karma) and Practical Means for the Dissolution of Sin: the Śiśumāra Contemplation
शुभाशुभकरीं बुद्धिं लभते पौरवैहिकीम् ॥ दुष्कृतैः कर्मभिर्देही शुभैर्वा स्वयमर्जितैः ॥ क्लेशक्शयं पापहरं शुभं कर्म करोत्यथ ॥
śubhāśubhakārīṃ buddhiṃ labhate paurvaihikīm || duṣkṛtaiḥ karmabhir dehī śubhair vā svayam arjitaiḥ || kleśakṣayaṃ pāpaharaṃ śubhaṃ karma karoty atha ||
สัตว์ผู้มีร่างกายย่อมได้ปัญญาในโลกนี้ซึ่งก่อให้เกิดผลทั้งกุศลและอกุศล อันถูกกำหนดด้วยกรรมที่สั่งสมไว้ก่อนในชาตินี้ ด้วยกรรมชั่ว—หรือด้วยกรรมดีที่ตนสั่งสมเอง—ต่อมาจึงกระทำกรรมดีอันทำให้กิเลสเสื่อมสิ้นและชำระบาป
Varāha (default, speaker not explicitly marked in this verse)
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":false,"topic":"None","instruction_summary":"None","karmic_consequence":"None"}
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 theory / moral psychology","core_concept":"Buddhi becomes a causal instrument shaped by one’s deeds; even from a mixed (śubha-aśubha) condition, one can initiate śubha-karman that reduces kleśa and removes pāpa.","practical_application":"Treat present choices as reconditioning buddhi: deliberately perform śubha acts (truth, charity, service, restraint) to weaken kleśas (anger, greed, delusion) and reverse pāpa momentum."}
Subject Matter: ["Ethics","Karma theory","Moral psychology"]
Primary Rasa: śānta
Secondary Rasa: karuṇa
Type: None
Related Themes: Varāha Purāṇa 210.19 (aśubha-kṣaya → śubha-buddhi); Varāha Purāṇa 210.22–23 (pure action leading to exalted state; svarga/niraya as karmaphala)
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A human (dehī) stands at a crossroads: one path marked by dark deeds shaping a turbulent mind, another by bright deeds shaping a clear intellect; the figure chooses a luminous act that breaks chains labeled kleśa and washes away stains labeled pāpa.","item_prompts":["crossroads motif","two streams of karma (dark/light) entering the head (buddhi)","chains breaking (kleśa-kṣaya)","water/light cleansing stains (pāpa-hara)","hands offering charity or performing worship (śubha-karman)"],"kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural: symbolic didactic composition with two color-fields (deep indigo for duṣkṛta, gold for śubha); stylized chains dissolving into lotus petals; crisp iconographic clarity.","tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore: gold-leaf emphasis on the śubha path and the purified buddhi halo; embossed ornaments; pāpa as dark relief at the margins being pushed away.","mysore_prompt":"Mysore: refined facial expressions showing inner struggle resolving into serenity; subtle gradients from shadow to light around the brow.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari: narrative vignette—disciple leaving a dark grove (duṣkṛta) toward a bright temple courtyard (śubha), with delicate landscape symbolism."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"didactic, gently urgent","suggested_raga":"Kalyani","pace":"medium","voice_tone":"firm, encouraging"}
FAQs
It illustrates a Purāṇic model where cognition (buddhi) is ethically conditioned by prior conduct, echoing broader Indic discussions of habit, disposition, and moral causation.
No geographic location is mentioned in this verse.
One’s deeds condition one’s moral discernment; cultivating wholesome action is presented as a means to reduce afflictive states and wrongdoing.
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