Varaha Purana 2.53: Adhyaya 2, Shloka 53
Cosmogony and the Ninefold Creation: Rudra’s Origin and the Prelude to the Sāvitrī-Veda Narrative
Pūrva Bhāga · Genealogical–Rājadharma Narrative (Puranic Kings and Sacrificial Culture)
तत्र प्रियव्रतो राजा महायज्वा तपोबलः । स चेष्ट्वा विविधैर्यज्ञैर्विपुलैर्भूरिदक्षिणैः ॥ २.५२ ॥
tatra priyavrato rājā mahāyajvā tapobalaḥ | sa ceṣṭvā vividhair yajñair vipulair bhūridakṣiṇaiḥ || 2.52 ||
tatra priyavrato rAjA mahAyajvA tapobalaH | sa cheShTvA vividhairyaj~nairvipulairbhUridakShiNaiH || 2.52 ||
وہاں راجا پریہ ورت عظیم یَجْن کرنے والا اور تپسیا کے بَل سے بھرپور تھا۔ اُس نے طرح طرح کے وسیع یَجْن کثیر دان و دکشنہ کے ساتھ ادا کیے اور پھر شاستری طریقے سے آگے بڑھا۔
Sandhi Notes
- विविधैर्यज्ञैः = विविधैः + यज्ञैः
- विपुलैर्भूरिदक्षिणैः = विपुलैः + भूरिदक्षिणैः
- चेष्ट्वा = च + इष्ट्वा (स्वर-सन्धि)
Varāha
Attentive
What makes Priyavrata exemplary—how do tapas and yajña with dakṣiṇā uphold dharma?
Power is sanctified by restraint (tapas) and service through sacrificial giving (dakṣiṇā).
Align leadership and household life with disciplined practice and generosity; treat giving as integral to any ‘successful’ undertaking.
Priyavrata’s yajña-centered kingship mirrors the Purāṇic idea that the world is sustained by sacrifice; Varāha’s broader identity as Yajña makes royal ritual generosity a terrestrial echo of cosmic maintenance.
Fire-altar as cosmic navel; dakṣiṇā as circulating ‘life-breath’ of ritual; the king’s tapas as inner heat powering outer sacrifice—microcosm to macrocosm correspondence.
Karma-yoga logic: disciplined action (yajña/dāna) performed in dharma supports purification (citta-śuddhi), preparing for higher knowledge beyond ritual.
A righteous king should perform varied yajñas and give abundant dakṣiṇā to officiants, supported by personal tapas/discipline.
Generous dakṣiṇā and well-performed yajña yield merit, fame, and stability of realm; miserliness/ritual negligence leads to demerit and disorder.
Varāha Purāṇa 2.2.50 (bhūri-dakṣiṇā kings in caturyuga); Varāha Purāṇa 2.2.51 (Priyavrata introduced)
FAQs
The verse reflects a common Purāṇic literary motif: exemplary kings are characterized by both ritual patronage (yajña) and disciplined self-cultivation (tapas), offering a window into how later Sanskrit texts framed ideal sovereignty and social order.
No specific geographic location is named in this verse; it functions as a narrative continuation marker (“tatra”, ‘there’) referring back to the prior context.
The implicit philosophical instruction emphasizes responsible kingship through disciplined conduct and public benefaction—here expressed as large-scale rites accompanied by generous, socially recognized gifting (dakṣiṇā).
Ask anything about this verse
Answers come straight from the texts, with the shlokas they draw on. Ask in your own words.
A free sign-in with Google or Apple 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 word-by-word meanings, Sanskrit recitation where available, and more.
