Varaha Purana 32.30: Adhyaya 32, Shloka 30
Dharma as the Bull-Form: Soma’s Transgression and the Institution of the Thirteenth Lunar Day Observance
चतुष्ट्रिपाद् द्व्येकपाच्च प्रभो त्वं कृतादिभिर्लक्ष्यसे येन लोकैः । तथा तथा कर्मभूमौ नभश्च प्रायोयुक्तः स्वगृहं पाहि विश्वम् ॥ ३२.३१ ॥
catuṣṭripād dvyekapācca prabho tvaṃ kṛtādibhir lakṣyase yena lokaiḥ | tathā tathā karmabhūmau nabhaś ca prāyoyuktaḥ svagṛhaṃ pāhi viśvam || 32.31 ||
اے پروردگار، دنیا والے کِرت اور دیگر یُگوں کے ذریعے تجھے پہچانتے ہیں، جہاں تو بالترتیب چار، تین، دو اور ایک ‘پاد’ (قدم/چرن) کے ساتھ ظاہر ہوتا ہے۔ اسی کے مطابق، کرم بھومی (زمین) اور آسمان میں تقریباً ہمیشہ مشغول رہ کر، اپنے ہی گھر کی طرح اس کائنات کی حفاظت فرما۔
Pṛthivī (default dialogue attribution; verse addresses Varāha as ‘Lord’)
Varaha Avatara Context: {"is_varaha_focus":true,"earth_interaction":"Pṛthivī addresses Varāha as the protector whose dharma ‘feet’ diminish across yugas; she petitions him to guard the world as his home."}
Bhu Devi Dialogue: {"is_dialogue":true,"speaker_role":"questioner","bhu_devi_state":"concerned yet trusting; stewardship-oriented","key_question":"As dharma declines through the yugas, how will you continue to protect and sustain the universe in the sphere of action and in the heavens?"}
Mathura Mandala: {"is_mathura_related":false,"krishna_connection":"Implicit foreshadowing only in the yuga-framework that later accommodates avatāras; not explicit here."}
Dharma Shastra: {"has_dharma_rule":false}
Vrata Mahatmya: {"has_vrata":false}
Cosmic Boar Symbolism: {"has_symbolism":true,"symbolic_interpretation":"The ‘four feet’ doctrine (catuṣpāda dharma) frames Varāha/Viṣṇu as the regulator of moral order across time; protection is continuous governance of cosmic ecology.","vedantic_connection":"Time (kāla) and dharma are under īśvara-niyati; the Lord remains the stable ground while guṇa-driven decline unfolds in saṃsāra."}
Philosophical Teaching: {"has_teaching":true,"teaching_type":"yuga-dharma / stewardship theology","core_concept":"Dharma’s manifestation changes with time, yet divine protection and responsibility toward the world remain constant.","practical_application":"In declining ages, compensate for reduced ‘dharma-feet’ through heightened personal restraint, compassion, and protective care for shared habitats."}
Subject Matter: ["Cosmology","Ethics","Time (Yuga theory)","Stewardship/Protection of the world"]
Primary Rasa: śānta
Secondary Rasa: karuṇa
Type: cosmic domains (terrestrial + celestial)
Related Themes: Varāha Purāṇa: Dharmotpatti section leading into closure; Adjacent verse 32.32.30 on Dharmāraṇya as dharma-pervaded space
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"Pṛthivī addresses the Lord with a cosmic backdrop showing four yugas symbolized by a bull with four/three/two/one legs, and the earth-sky continuum under divine guardianship.","item_prompts":["bull (Vṛṣa/Dharma) with diminishing legs motif","four yuga emblems (gold/silver/copper/iron tones)","earth globe and starry sky","Varāha/Viṣṇu as protector with blessing hand"],"kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural: symbolic bull at center with segmented yuga-color bands; Varāha large halo, Pṛthivī in añjali; stylized clouds and celestial bands.","tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore: gold-leaf cosmic mandala; Varāha enthroned; bull-dharma icon with four legs highlighted by gems; earth-sky rendered as concentric rings.","mysore_prompt":"Mysore: refined allegory—bull in foreground, yuga panels behind; soft celestial gradients; Varāha calm, protective stance.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari: narrative landscape with sky and earth layers; bull motif integrated subtly; intimate petition scene with lyrical clouds."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"solemn, cosmic, supplicatory","suggested_raga":"Kedar","pace":"medium","voice_tone":"grave, steady, prayerful"}
FAQs
It preserves a widely attested Purāṇic and Dharmaśāstric motif: dharma is described as standing on four ‘feet’ in Kṛta Yuga and progressively diminishing across later yugas. This offers a compact witness to medieval Sanskrit conceptions of moral time and cosmic order.
No specific pilgrimage site or named geography is identified in this verse; the terms karmabhūmi (‘realm of action’) and nabhas (‘sky/space’) function as broad cosmographic domains rather than a pinpointed location.
The verse frames a philosophical instruction of stewardship: the Lord is asked to ‘protect the universe’ and to regard it as ‘one’s own dwelling,’ emphasizing responsibility for the world across terrestrial and celestial spheres.
Ask anything about this verse
Answers come straight from the texts, with the shlokas they draw on. Ask in your own words.
A free Google sign-in 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.