Varaha Purana 58.5: Adhyaya 58, Shloka 5
The Procedure for the Saubhāgyakaraṇa Vow
Rite for Auspicious Fortune
रुद्रो जनानां मर्त्यानां काव्यं शास्त्रं न तद्भवेत् । विष्णुं रुद्रकृतं ब्रूयात् श्रीर्गौरी न तु पार्थिव । तन्नास्तिकानां मर्त्यानां काव्यं ज्ञेयं विचक्षणैः ॥ ५८.५ ॥
rudro janānāṁ martyānāṁ kāvyaṁ śāstraṁ na tad bhavet | viṣṇuṁ rudrakṛtaṁ brūyāt śrīr gaurī na tu pārthiva | tan nāstikānāṁ martyānāṁ kāvyaṁ jñeyaṁ vicakṣaṇaiḥ || 58.5 ||
สำหรับปุถุชนผู้เป็นมรรตย์ บทกวีที่อ้างว่า ‘รจนาโดยพระรุทระ’ ไม่ควรถูกนับเป็นศาสตรา หากผู้ใดกล่าวว่า ‘พระวิษณุถูกสร้างโดยพระรุทระ’ หรือว่า ‘พระศรีแท้จริงคือพระคุรี’ โอ้ ปารถิวี ผู้มีปัญญาพึงรู้ว่านั่นเป็นเพียงกวีนิพนธ์ของมรรตย์ผู้ไร้ศรัทธา มิใช่ศาสตรา
Varāha (default dialogue framework; explicit speaker not stated in fragment)
Varaha Avatara Context: {"is_varaha_focus":false}
Bhu Devi Dialogue: {"is_dialogue":false,"speaker_role":"instructor"}
Mathura Mandala: {"is_mathura_related":false}
Dharma Shastra: {"has_dharma_rule":true,"instruction_summary":"Epistemic boundary-setting: reject as non-śāstra any composition that asserts Viṣṇu is created by Rudra or that confuses Śrī with Gaurī in a way that violates the text’s intended theological order; treat it as nāstika-kāvya.","karmic_consequence":"Accepting such claims leads to wrong view and loss of śāstric guidance; discerning rejection preserves right doctrine and devotional orientation."}
Vrata Mahatmya: {"has_vrata":false}
Cosmic Boar Symbolism: {"has_symbolism":false}
Philosophical Teaching: {"has_teaching":true,"teaching_type":"epistemology of scripture (śāstra-lakṣaṇa)","core_concept":"Not every ‘religious’ poem is śāstra; doctrinal content and alignment with accepted pramāṇa determine authority.","practical_application":"Evaluate teachings by consistency with recognized śāstra and sampradāya hermeneutics; avoid adopting claims that invert the text’s stated deva-tattva relations."}
Subject Matter: ["Textual Authority","Theology (Inter-deity Relations)","Epistemology","Puranic Polemics"]
Primary Rasa: raudra
Secondary Rasa: śānta
Related Themes: Varāha Purāṇa 58.58.4 (against divergent exposition); Varāha Purāṇa 58.58.6-7 (proper worship/mantra procedure follows)
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"Varāha warns against false scriptures: a contrast between luminous śāstra manuscripts and darker ‘nāstika-kāvya’ scrolls; Bhu Devī listens seriously.","item_prompts":["Varāha with raised teaching hand","two manuscript piles: ‘śāstra’ vs ‘kāvya’","Bhu Devī with concerned expression","symbolic scales of pramāṇa (balance)"],"kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural: strong color contrast between sacred manuscripts and darkened scrolls; Varāha’s stern yet composed face; ornamental borders with script motifs.","tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore: gold-leaf emphasis on ‘true śāstra’ manuscripts; darker matte area for rejected text; Varāha central, commanding.","mysore_prompt":"Mysore: elegant interior; Varāha indicates a manuscript to accept and one to set aside; subtle moral contrast through lighting.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari: narrative split-panel—left: revered śāstra recitation; right: misguided poet; Varāha points to the correct side."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"stern, discriminating","suggested_raga":"Bhairav","pace":"medium","voice_tone":"grave, emphatic on prohibitive phrases"}
FAQs
It reflects a common Purāṇic strategy of establishing textual and doctrinal authority by distinguishing śāstra (authoritative teaching) from kāvya (mere poetic composition), and by policing claims about divine hierarchy within competing sectarian milieus.
No specific geographic site is named in this verse; the focus is doctrinal and epistemic rather than on sacred geography.
The verse advances an epistemic-ethical guideline: discerning readers should evaluate claims critically and classify texts by their alignment with the tradition’s criteria for authoritative knowledge (śāstra), rather than accepting sectarian assertions unexamined.
Ask anything about this verse
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