Varaha Purana 78.22: Adhyaya 78, Shloka 22

Names of the Four Directional Mountain-Kings and Their Lakes

Rudra’s Geographical Description

Uttara Bhāga · Sacred Geography (Mountain Catalogues / Northern Regions)

Devanagari script

नीलः कनकशृङ्गश्च शतशृङ्गश्च पर्वतः । पुष्करो मेघशैलोऽथ विरजाश्चाचलोत्तमः । जारुचिश्चैव शैलेन्द्र इत्येते उत्तराः स्मृताः ॥ ७८.२२ ॥

Recitation with translationVaraha Purana 78.22

Transliteration

nīlaḥ kanakaśṛṅgaś ca śataśṛṅgaś ca parvataḥ | puṣkaro meghaśailo 'tha virajāś cācalottamaḥ | jāruciś caiva śailendra ity ete uttarāḥ smṛtāḥ || 78.22 ||

ITRANS transliteration

Translation

(ภูเขาทางทิศเหนือได้แก่) นีละ, กนกศฤงคะ และศตศฤงคะ; ปุษกร; เมฆไศละ; วิรชา ภูผาอันประเสริฐ; และชารุจิ ผู้เป็นเจ้าแห่งขุนเขา—ทั้งหมดนี้ระลึกว่าเป็นภูเขาทางเหนือ

Ask anything about this verse...Ask

Word by Word

• nīlaḥ: Nīla (name)
• Type: Noun
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular; proper name
• Role: Karta (कर्ता)
• Root: nīla (प्रातिपदिक)

• kanakaśṛṅgaḥ: Kanakaśṛṅga (golden-peaked; name)
• Type: Noun
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (kanakasya śṛṅgam) as mountain-name
• Role: Karta (कर्ता)
• Root: kanaka + śṛṅga (प्रातिपदिक)

• ca: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: Conjunction (समुच्चयबोधक अव्यय)
• Role: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Root: ca (अव्यय)

• śataśṛṅgaḥ: Śataśṛṅga (hundred-peaked; name)
• Type: Noun
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular; द्विगु-समासः (śatam śṛṅgāṇi yasya) as name
• Role: Karta (कर्ता)
• Root: śata + śṛṅga (प्रातिपदिक)

• ca: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: Conjunction (समुच्चयबोधक अव्यय)
• Role: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Root: ca (अव्यय)

• parvataḥ: mountain
• Type: Noun
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular; apposition to śataśṛṅgaḥ
• Role: Karta (कर्ता)
• Root: parvata (प्रातिपदिक)

• puṣkaraḥ: Puṣkara (name)
• Type: Noun
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular; proper name
• Role: Karta (कर्ता)
• Root: puṣkara (प्रातिपदिक)

• meghaśailaḥ: Meghaśaila (cloud-mountain; name)
• Type: Noun
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (meghasya śailaḥ)
• Role: Karta (कर्ता)
• Root: megha + śaila (प्रातिपदिक)

• atha: then / also
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: Particle/adverb (अनन्तरार्थक अव्यय)
• Role: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Root: atha (अव्यय)

• virajāḥ: Virajā (name)
• Type: Noun
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular; proper name (ending -āḥ as nom.sg. of -ā stem in some proper names)
• Role: Karta (कर्ता)
• Root: virajā (प्रातिपदिक)

• ca: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: Conjunction (समुच्चयबोधक अव्यय)
• Role: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Root: ca (अव्यय)

• acala-uttamaḥ: Acalottama (best of mountains; name)
• Type: Noun
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (acalānām uttamaḥ)
• Role: Karta (कर्ता)
• Root: acala + uttama (प्रातिपदिक)

• jāruciḥ: Jāruci (name)
• Type: Noun
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular; तत्पुरुषः (jāyāyāḥ ruciḥ / or as fixed proper name)
• Role: Karta (कर्ता)
• Root: jā + ruci (प्रातिपदिक)

• ca: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: Conjunction (समुच्चयबोधक अव्यय)
• Role: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Root: ca (अव्यय)

• eva: indeed / just
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: Particle (निश्चय/अवधारणार्थक अव्यय)
• Role: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Root: eva (अव्यय)

• śailendraḥ: Śailendra (name/title)
• Type: Noun
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (śailānām indraḥ)
• Role: Karta (कर्ता)
• Root: śaila + indra (प्रातिपदिक)

• iti: thus
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: Quotative particle (इति-प्रयोगः)
• Role: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Root: iti (अव्यय)

• ete: these
• Type: Noun
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural; demonstrative pronoun
• Role: Karta (कर्ता)
• Root: etad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)

• uttarāḥ: northern
• Type: Adjective
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural; adjective qualifying 'ete' (mountains)
• Role: Karta (कर्ता)
• Root: uttara (प्रातिपदिक)

• smṛtāḥ: are remembered / are said
• Type: Verb
• Form: Past passive participle (क्त), Masculine, Nominative, Plural; predicative with 'ete uttarāḥ'
• Role: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Root: smṛ (धातु) → smṛta (कृदन्त)

Sandhi Notes

• kanakaśṛṅgaś ca → kanakaśṛṅgaḥ ca
• śataśṛṅgaś ca → śataśṛṅgaḥ ca
• meghaśailo 'tha → meghaśailaḥ atha
• virajāś cācalottamaḥ → virajāḥ ca acalottamaḥ
• jāruciś caiva → jāruciḥ ca eva (visarga sandhi)

Speaker and setting

Adbhuta and Shanta rasa

Speaker

Varāha

Bhu Devi and Varaha

In this verse

Varaha teaches her

Her state of mind

Curious

What she asks

Which mountains are designated as ‘northern’, and what are their names in order?

The teaching

Kind of teaching

Smṛti-vidyā (remembered knowledge as sacred)

Subjects

GeographyCosmologyHeritage Sites

Core idea

Naming (nāma) and classification (saṃjñā) are tools for transmitting sacred world-knowledge across generations.

In practice

Use structured remembrance—lists, directions, sequences—to preserve cultural/ecological heritage and to anchor ritual saṅkalpa to place.

Cross references

Tags

• Classical Literature
• Purāṇic Catalogues
• Ancient Geography
• Vaiṣṇavism

FAQs

What is the historical significance of this verse?

It exemplifies a Purāṇic geographical catalogue, preserving traditional toponyms and serving as a textual witness to how ancient Sanskrit literature organized and remembered regional landscapes—here, the northern mountains.

Which geographic location is identified?

The verse identifies a set of 'northern' mountains by traditional names (e.g., Nīla, Kanakaśṛṅga, Śataśṛṅga). Precise modern identifications are uncertain without additional contextual verses or corroborating sources, so these are best treated as inherited toponyms within Purāṇic sacred geography.

What is the primary ethical instruction?

No explicit ethical injunction is stated; the verse functions primarily as a cultural-heritage and geographic record, contributing to the broader Purāṇic practice of mapping and remembering significant natural features.