Varaha Purana 3.28: Adhyaya 3, Shloka 28
Nārada’s Account of a Former Birth and a Hymn to Nārāyaṇa
Pūrva Bhāga · Pr̥thivī-Uddhāra and Cosmogonic Dialogue
सर्वस्य जगतः सृष्टिरेषैव प्रभुधर्मतः । एतन्मे प्राकृतं जन्म यन्मां पृच्छसि पार्थिव ॥ ३.२८ ॥
sarvasya jagataḥ sṛṣṭir eṣaiva prabhudharmataḥ | etan me prākṛtaṃ janma yan māṃ pṛcchasi pārthiva || 3.28 ||
sarvasya jagataH sRRiShTireShaiva prabhudharmataH | etanme prAkRRitaM janma yanmAM pRRichChasi pArthiva || 3.28 ||
حاکمانہ قدرت کے فطری دھرم سے یہی سارے جگت کی سृष्टی ہے۔ اے زمینی فرمانروا! جس ‘پراکرت’ (مادی) جنم کے بارے میں تو مجھ سے پوچھتا ہے، وہ یہی ہے۔
Sandhi Notes
- सृष्टिरेषैव = सृष्टिः + एषा + एव
- प्रभुधर्मतः = प्रभुधर्म + तः (पञ्चमी)
- यन्मां = यत् + माम्
Varāha
Origin of creation and the speaker’s ‘material/natural’ birth (prākṛta janma).
The world’s creation proceeds from the intrinsic order of sovereign reality; divine ‘birth’ can be described as prākṛta (within nature) for explanatory purposes.
See nature and society as governed by dharma-like regularities; align one’s life with that order rather than resisting it through egoic will.
Instructional address within dialogue.
Varāha frames creation as arising from ‘prabhu-dharma’ (the inherent law/nature of sovereign reality) and calls his manifestation ‘prākṛta janma’, suggesting avatāra as a controlled entry into prakṛti for cosmic regulation.
Implicit yajña-logic: the Lord’s ‘taking birth’ within prakṛti is the enabling condition for ordered sṛṣṭi, like the adhvaryu entering the ritual field to set it in motion.
Distinguishes transcendence from immanence: the Supreme remains beyond, yet assumes a prakṛta mode for līlā and governance; resonates with the idea of īśvara operating through māyā/prakṛti without being bound.
Varāha Purāṇa: surrounding verses on sṛṣṭi-krama and the interlocutor’s inquiry about origin
FAQs
It reflects a common Purāṇic strategy of framing cosmology as a dialogue, presenting creation as an ordered doctrine (sṛṣṭi) explained through an authoritative speaker, while using technical terms such as prākṛta (pertaining to prakṛti) to classify modes of manifestation.
No specific geographic site is named in this verse; the address “pārthiva” functions as a social-political epithet (“king/earthly ruler”) rather than a toponym.
The verse primarily conveys a philosophical instruction: creation and manifestation are presented as governed by an intrinsic order (dharma) of sovereign power, encouraging inquiry (pṛcchasi) and disciplined understanding rather than asserting a ritual or social command.
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