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Varaha Purana 39.2 — Adhyaya 39, Shloka 2

Discrimination of the Three Bodies and the Dharaṇī Vow: A Manual for Dvādaśī Observance

दुर्वासा उवाच । न द्वे त्रीणि शरीराणि वाच्यं तद्विपरीतकम् । विभोगायतनं चैव त्रिशरीराणि प्राणिनाम् ॥ ३९.२ ॥

durvāsā uvāca | na dve trīṇi śarīrāṇi vācyaṃ tadviparītakam | vibhogāyatanaṃ caiva triśarīrāṇi prāṇinām || 39.2 ||

دُروَاسا نے کہا: یہ نہیں کہنا چاہیے کہ دو یا تین جسم ہیں؛ بلکہ اس کے برعکس کہنا چاہیے۔ جانداروں کے واقعی تین جسم ہوتے ہیں، جو اعمال کے پھل کے بھوگ کا مقام ہیں۔

दुर्वासाःDurvāsā (sage)
दुर्वासाः:
Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
TypeNoun
Rootदुर्वासस् (प्रातिपदिक)
Formपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन
उवाचsaid
उवाच:
Kriya (क्रिया/Verb)
TypeVerb
Rootवच् (धातु)
Formलिट्-लकार, प्रथम-पुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपद
not
:
Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Negation)
TypeIndeclinable
Rootन (अव्यय)
Formअव्यय; निषेध-निपात (negation particle)
द्वेtwo
द्वे:
Visheshana (विशेषण)
TypeAdjective
Rootद्वि (प्रातिपदिक)
Formनपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, द्विवचन; संख्याविशेषण
त्रीणिthree
त्रीणि:
Visheshana (विशेषण)
TypeAdjective
Rootत्रि (प्रातिपदिक)
Formनपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, बहुवचन; संख्याविशेषण
शरीराणिbodies
शरीराणि:
Karma (कर्म/Object)
TypeNoun
Rootशरीर (प्रातिपदिक)
Formनपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन
वाच्यम्should be said
वाच्यम्:
Kriya (क्रिया/Predicative)
TypeVerb
Rootवच् (धातु)
Formकृदन्त; विधेय-भावे (gerundive/तव्यत्-प्रत्यय), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; ‘to be said/should be stated’
तत्that
तत्:
Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Correlative)
TypeNoun
Rootतद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
Formनपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन
विपरीतकम्opposite/contrary
विपरीतकम्:
Visheshana (विशेषण)
TypeAdjective
Rootविपरीतक (प्रातिपदिक)
Formनपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषण
विभोगायतनम्the locus of (varied) experience/enjoyment
विभोगायतनम्:
Karma (कर्म/Object)
TypeNoun
Rootवि-भोग + आयतन (प्रातिपदिक)
Formनपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; षष्ठी/उपपद-तत्पुरुष: भोगस्य आयतनम् (abode/seat of experience)
and
:
Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Conjunction)
TypeIndeclinable
Rootच (अव्यय)
Formअव्यय; समुच्चय (conjunction)
एवindeed/only
एव:
Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Emphasis)
TypeIndeclinable
Rootएव (अव्यय)
Formअव्यय; अवधारण (emphatic particle)
त्रिशरीराणिthree bodies
त्रिशरीराणि:
Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
TypeNoun
Rootत्रि + शरीर (प्रातिपदिक)
Formनपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, बहुवचन; द्विगु-समास: त्रयः शरीराणि (three bodies)
प्राणिनाम्of living beings
प्राणिनाम्:
Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Possessor)
TypeNoun
Rootप्राणिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
Formपुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (Genitive/6th), बहुवचन

Durvāsā

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

Bhu Devi Dialogue: {"is_dialogue":true,"speaker_role":"instructor","bhu_devi_state":"curious; seeking clarity on embodied experience and karmic fruition","key_question":"How many ‘bodies’ (śarīras) does a living being possess as the basis for experiencing karmic results?"}

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

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

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

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

Philosophical Teaching: {"has_teaching":true,"teaching_type":"philosophical anthropology / karma-theory","core_concept":"Embodied experience is structured through a triad of ‘bodies’ (trī-śarīra) that function as the locus (āyatana) for karmic enjoyment/suffering (vibhoga).","practical_application":"Cultivate discernment about which layer of embodiment is being purified—conduct, intention, and subtle causal tendencies—rather than reducing the self to only gross physiology."}

Subject Matter: ["Philosophy","Ethics","Cosmology"]

Primary Rasa: śānta

Secondary Rasa: adbhuta

Type: None

Related Themes: 39.39.3-6 (development of adharma/dharma bodies and the ‘third’ beyond senses)

Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"Sage Durvāsā seated in an austere hermitage, instructing on the three bodies as the basis of karmic experience; the teaching is visualized as three concentric sheaths around a human figure.","item_prompts":["Durvāsā with matted hair and staff (daṇḍa)","palm-leaf manuscript or teaching gesture (vyākhyāna-mudrā)","three concentric aura-sheaths around a seated disciple","forest āśrama setting","subtle light indicating ‘vibhoga-āyatana’"],"kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural style: Durvāsā in ochre/green palette, bold outlines, serene śānta bhāva; three luminous sheaths around a figure, stylized forest flora.","tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore style: central Durvāsā with gold-leaf halo; embossed concentric rings symbolizing three bodies; rich reds and greens, ornate borders.","mysore_prompt":"Mysore painting: delicate linework, soft shading; Durvāsā teaching beside a manuscript stand; subtle translucent layers around the disciple.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari style: hillside hermitage, cool palette; Durvāsā instructing with expressive eyes; symbolic three-layer aura rendered as simple bands."}

Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"contemplative, scholastic","suggested_raga":"Yaman","pace":"medium-slow","voice_tone":"measured, explanatory, with clear caesura at doctrinal pivots"}

C
Classical Literature
P
Purāṇic Studies
S
Sanskrit Philology
P
Philosophical Anthropology

FAQs

It reflects a Purāṇic synthesis of philosophical anthropology, using concise doctrinal language (śarīra-traya) to explain how beings undergo experience and reap results, a theme shared across late classical Sanskrit traditions.

No geographic location is named in this verse fragment; the content is doctrinal rather than tied to sacred geography.

The verse frames embodied existence as an instrument for experiencing consequences, reinforcing a moral-philosophical principle of accountability (actions yield experienced results within embodied life).

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