Varaha Purana 137.3 — Adhyaya 137, Shloka 3

The Tale of the Vulture and the She-Jackal: The Māhātmya of the Saukarava Sacred Field

Devanagari script

इति गृध्रजम्बूकोपाख्यानं समाप्तम्

Transliteration

iti gṛdhra-jambūkopākhyānaṁ samāptam

Translation

“Sa ganito nagwakas ang karugtong na salaysay tungkol sa buwitre at sa asong-gubat.”

Word by Word

• इति: thus
• इति: वाक्यसमाप्तिसूचक (Discourse marker)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इति (अव्यय)
• Form: उक्त्यर्थक/समाप्त्यर्थक अव्यय (quotative/closing particle)

• गृध्र-जम्बूक-उपाख्यानम्: the tale of the vulture and the jackal
• गृध्र-जम्बूक-उपाख्यानम्: कर्म/विधेय (Predicate noun; 'is ended')
• Type: Noun
• Root: गृध्र (प्रातिपदिक) + जम्बूक (प्रातिपदिक) + उपाख्यान (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया (Nom./Acc.), एकवचन (Singular); षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (genitive determinative): 'गृध्रजम्बूकयोः उपाख्यानम्'

• समाप्तम्: finished / concluded
• समाप्तम्: विधेय (Predicate)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सम् + आप् (धातु) → समाप्त (कृदन्त/प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (Past passive participle, क्त), नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; विधेयविशेषण (predicate adjective)

Speaker

Sūta (default for colophons/editorial closures in Purāṇic style)

Varaha Avatara Context

Varaha Avatara Context: {"is_varaha_focus":false,"aspect_highlighted":"None","boar_form_detail":"None","earth_interaction":"None"}

Bhu Devi Dialogue

Bhu Devi Dialogue: {"is_dialogue":false,"speaker_role":"observer","bhu_devi_state":"None","key_question":"None"}

Mathura Mandala

Mathura Mandala: {"is_mathura_related":false,"specific_site":"None","parikrama_context":"None","krishna_connection":"None"}

Dharma Shastra

Dharma Shastra: {"has_dharma_rule":false,"topic":"None","instruction_summary":"None","karmic_consequence":"None"}

Vrata Mahatmya

Vrata Mahatmya: {"has_vrata":false,"vrata_name":"None","tithi_month":"None","promised_fruit":"None"}

Cosmic Boar Symbolism

Cosmic Boar Symbolism: {"has_symbolism":false,"symbolic_interpretation":"None","yajna_varaha_imagery":"None","vedantic_connection":"None"}

Philosophical Teaching

Philosophical Teaching: {"has_teaching":true,"teaching_type":"hermeneutics / narrative-dharma","core_concept":"Purāṇic instruction is often layered: main dialogue plus subsidiary exempla (upākhyāna) that conclude with formal colophons.","practical_application":"Read the next section as a new unit; treat the completed tale as an ethical exemplum whose lesson is to be carried into the ensuing discourse."}

Subject Matter

Subject Matter: ["Literary Structure","Heritage Narratives"]

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: śānta

Secondary Rasa: None

Geographic Context

Type: forest-assembly (narrative frame)

Cross References

Related Themes: Upākhyāna-closure formulae elsewhere in Varāha Purāṇa (iti...upākhyānam samāptam)

Visual Art Cues

Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A manuscript-like closing line or a reciter (Sūta) concluding an embedded tale before transitioning to the next teaching.","item_prompts":["palm-leaf manuscript or birch-bark folio","scribe colophon line","Sūta seated on vyāsāsana","listeners in assembly","end-marker (daṇḍa) punctuation motif"],"kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural palette; Sūta in saffron/white seated in a forest-assembly, stylized folio with the colophon line emphasized; calm closure mood.","tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore style; Sūta on ornate seat with subtle gold-leaf border framing a manuscript folio bearing the colophon; minimal narrative action.","mysore_prompt":"Mysore painting; refined courtly linework showing the reciter concluding, with manuscript and attentive sages; subdued tones.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari miniature; intimate forest satsanga scene with Sūta concluding, manuscript in hand, delicate trees and soft washes."}

Audio Atmosphere

Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"formal closure / transition","suggested_raga":"Madhyamāvati","pace":"slow","voice_tone":"measured, concluding cadence"}

Tags

• Purāṇic Literature
• Manuscript Colophon
• Narrative Framing

FAQs

What is the historical significance of this verse?

Such closure formulas are important for manuscript segmentation and critical editing, marking boundaries of embedded tales (upākhyānas) within larger Purāṇic chapters.

Which geographic location is identified?

No location is specified; this is a structural/narratological marker.

What is the primary ethical instruction?

No direct ethical instruction is stated; it functions as an editorial conclusion to a didactic episode.