Varaha Purana - Adhyaya 107
Varaha PuranaAdhyaya 10715 Shlokas

Adhyaya 107: The Glorification of Donating a Butter-Cow (Navanīta-Dhenu)

Navanīta-dhenu-dāna-māhātmya

Ritual-Manual (Dāna-vidhi) with Soteriological Phalaśruti

本章以《普拉那》式的教诲框架展开,述及筏罗诃(Varāha)对大地女神普利提毗(Pṛthivī)的开示,规定了制作并布施以新鲜黄油(navanīta)为主的象征“黄油母牛”(navanīta-dhenu)的仪轨(vidhi)。文中详述以牛粪(gomaya)涂抹净地、安置牛皮与器皿,并以金属、宝石、糖、花、果、织物与达尔婆草(darbha)塑成牛之诸相;又在四方点灯,诵“牛之真言”,并以明言将navanīta认作海乳(搅拌大海)所出神圣甘露(amṛta)的真言,将供品正式奉与一位婆罗门居士。末尾的果报偈(phalaśruti)宣称:施者、见证者与诵读者皆得净除罪垢(pāpa),并获至毗湿奴界(Viṣṇuloka)与与湿婆合一(Śiva-sāyujya)之果。

Speakers

VarāhaPṛthivīHotṛ (narrative voice within the instruction)

Key Concepts

navanīta-dhenu (butter-cow) as dāna-objectdāna-vidhi (procedural gifting ritual)phalaśruti (merit claims for hearing/seeing/giving)amṛta-udbhava (ocean-churning origin motif)śuddhi (pāpa-vinirmukti) through ritualized generositydirectional lamps (dikṣu dīpa-pradīpana) and altar preparationmaterial semiotics (metals, gems, sugar, flowers as ritual signifiers)
Sanskrit recitationVaraha Purana Adhyaya 107

Shlokas in Adhyaya 107

Verse 1

अथ नवनीतधेनुदानमाहात्म्यम् ॥ होतोवाच ॥ नवनीतमयीं धेनुं शृणु राजन् प्रयत्नतः ॥ यां श्रुत्वा सर्वपापेभ्यो मुच्यते नात्र संशयः

今当宣说布施“酥牛”(以新鲜酥油制成之牛)的殊胜功德。祭官Hotṛ曰:“大王,请专心聆听此新酥所成之牛;闻此者,必脱离一切罪过,毫无疑虑。”

Verse 2

गोमयेनानुलिप्तायां भूमौ गोचर्ममाणतः ॥ चर्म कृष्णमृगस्येव तस्योपरि च धारयेत्

于以牛粪涂抹之地面上,当铺展一张牛皮以为尺度;其上复置一张如黑羚羊(kṛṣṇamṛga)之皮。

Verse 3

कुम्भं तु नवनीतस्य प्रस्थमात्रस्य धारयेत् ॥ वत्सं चतुर्थभागस्य तस्यामुत्तरतो न्यसेत्

当置一器,盛新酥一prastha之量;并于其北方安置一犊,为其四分之一之量。

Verse 4

कृत्वा विधाननेन च राजसिंह सुवर्णशृङ्गी सुमुखा च कार्या ॥ नेत्रे च तस्या मणिमौक्तिकैस्तु कृत्वा तथान्यच्च गुडेन जिह्वाम्

并依所规定之仪轨塑成之,大王中之雄狮:当令其具金角、面容端美;其眼以宝石与珍珠为之,其舌亦以粗糖(guda,古德)制成。

Verse 5

ओष्ठौ च पुष्पैश्च फलैश्च दन्ताः प्रकल्प्य सास्नां च सितैश्च सूत्रैः ।। जिह्वां तथा शर्करया प्रकल्प्य फलानि दन्ताः कम्बलं पट्टसूत्रम् ॥

以花塑其唇,以果作其齿,并以白线安置其垂喉(颈垂)。又以糖塑其舌;以果为齿,并随供毯与织成之线布为伴供。

Verse 6

नवनीतस्तनीं राजन् इक्षुपादां प्रकल्पयेत् ।। ताम्रपृष्ठां रौप्यखुरां दर्भरोमकृतच्छविम् ॥

大王,当塑作(此牛):乳房以新鲜酥油为之,四足以甘蔗为之;背为铜,蹄为银,其光泽以库沙草作“毛”而成。

Verse 7

स्वर्णशृङ्गीं रौप्यखुरां पञ्चरत्नसमन्विताम् ।। चतुर्भिस्तिलपात्रैश्च संवृतां सर्वतो दिशि ॥

其角为金,其蹄为银,具足五宝;并以四只盛芝麻之器皿从四方环绕围护。

Verse 8

आच्छाद्य वस्त्रयुग्मेन गन्धपुष्पैरलङ्कृताम् ।। दीपांश्च दिक्षु प्रज्वाल्य ब्राह्मणाय निवेदयेत् ॥

以一对衣服覆之,并以香与花庄严;又于诸方点燃灯盏,然后奉献于婆罗门。

Verse 9

मन्त्रास्त एव जप्तव्याः सर्वधेनुषु ये स्मृताः ।। पुरा देवासुरैः सर्वैः सागरस्य तु मन्थने ॥

凡诸牛施所传诵之彼等真言,当如法持诵——正如往昔诸天与阿修罗在搅拌大海之时所行。

Verse 10

एवमुच्चार्य तां दद्याद्ब्राह्मणाय कुटुम्बिने ।। धेनुं च दत्त्वा सुदुघां सोपधानां नयेद्गृहम् ॥

如是诵毕,当施与居家之婆罗门。又施与多乳之乳牛,并连同其垫褥与支具,当牵引此所施之牛至受者之家。

Verse 11

हविर् एवं रसं चैव विप्रवर्यस्य भूपते ।। भुक्त्वा तिष्ठेद्दिनं राजन् धेनुदस्त्रीणि वै द्विजः ॥

如是,噢大地之主,应为最胜婆罗门备办哈维斯(祭供之食)及饮品/精华。彼既食毕,噢王,二次生者当停留一日,行与施牛相关之戒仪。

Verse 12

यः प्रपश्यति तां धेनुं दीयमानां नरोत्तम ।। सर्वपापविनिर्मुक्तः शिवसायुज्यतां व्रजेत् ॥

噢人中至胜,凡见彼牛正被施与之时者,皆离一切罪垢,而得与湿婆合一。

Verse 13

पितृभिः पूर्वजैः सार्द्धं भविष्यद्भिश्च मानवः ।। विष्णुलोकं व्रजत्याशु यावदाभूतसम्प्लवम् ॥

与先祖诸父及往昔祖先同在,并及未来将生者,人速往毗湿奴之界,直至众生之大劫坏灭。

Verse 14

य इदं शृणुयाद्भक्त्या श्रावयेद्वापि मानवः ।। सर्वपापविशुद्धात्मा विष्णुलोके महीयते ॥

凡以虔敬聆听此文者,或令他人得闻者,皆净除一切罪业,其身在毗湿奴之界受尊崇。

Verse 15

उत्पन्नं दिव्यममृतं नवनीतमिदं शुभम् ॥ आप्यायनं तु भूतानां नवनीत नमोऽस्तु ते ॥

这吉祥的酥油(黄油),如天界甘露(amṛta)般出生而显现;它确为众生的滋养与增益。噢酥油,向你致敬。

Inside Adhyaya 107

How it unfolds

  1. Where it opens

    Varāha, in the didactic Purāṇic mode, addresses Pṛthivī and introduces dāna as a purifier of conduct and sin, narrowing the focus to a specific, highly crafted gift: the navanīta-dhenu (butter-cow).

  2. Central event

    A stepwise dāna-vidhi is laid out: the ritual ground is purified (gomaya-smearing, darbha arrangement), vessels and a hide are placed, and a symbolic cow is constructed primarily from fresh butter and ornamented with metals, gems, sugar, flowers, fruits, textiles, and darbha; lamps are lit in the directions and the gift is ritually transferred to a qualified brāhmaṇa gṛhastha with prescribed cow-mantras.

  3. Climax resolution

    The formal moment of offering is sealed by mantra-recitation, including an explicit identification of navanīta with amṛta arising from the sāgara-manthana (ocean-churning), thereby sacralizing the substance and elevating the gift from household produce to cosmological nectar.

  4. Closing phalashruti

    Phalaśruti promises pāpa-śuddhi not only for the donor but also for the witness and the reciter/hearer of the instruction, culminating in stated attainments of Viṣṇuloka and Śiva-sāyujya.

Geographical context

No specific toponyms or regional ecologies are named in this adhyāya; the setting is a generalized ritual space (bhūmi) prepared with gomaya and darbha, with cosmological reference to the Kṣīra-samudra/‘ocean churning’ mythic horizon (sāgara-manthana).

Ritual instructions

  • Primary RitualNavanīta-dhenu-dāna (donation of a butter-cow) to a brāhmaṇa householder with cow-mantras and directional lamp-lighting.
  • BenefitPāpa-vinirmukti/śuddhi through ritualized generosity; merit extends to donor, witness, and reciter; promised destinations include Viṣṇuloka and Śiva-sāyujya.

The narrative frame

  • VarāhaPṛthivī · Prescriptive, ritual-manual (vidhi) with soteriological assurance; authoritative and instructional.

The emotional journey

  • Dominant RasaŚānta (with devotional undertone)
  • Emotional ProgressionFrom orderly instruction and purification of space → focused craftsmanship and consecration → solemn transfer of the gift through mantra → quiet assurance of liberation-like outcomes and higher-world attainment.

Planning a pilgrimage

  • Visit FeasibilityNot tirtha-specific; practice is portable and framed for household/ritual settings rather than a fixed pilgrimage site. Modern engagement is best approached via consultation with a traditional priest for mantra and recipient-qualification norms.

Frequently Asked Questions

The text foregrounds dāna (ritualized generosity) as a discipline of social reciprocity and moral purification: it prescribes a carefully constructed gift to a brāhmaṇa householder and frames the act of giving (and even witnessing or transmitting the instruction) as a means of pāpa-śuddhi and ordered social conduct.

No explicit tithi, nakṣatra, month, or seasonal timing is stated in the transmitted passage for Adhyāya 107; the instructions focus on materials, spatial arrangement, mantra-recitation, and the recipient protocol rather than calendrical scheduling.

Direct ecological regulation is not articulated, but the chapter’s earth-oriented ethic can be read through its terrestrial ritual grammar: preparation of the ground with gomaya and darbha, and the cow-as-abundance symbol, positions agricultural substrates and bovine-derived materials as mediators of purity, continuity, and responsible stewardship of household resources within a terrestrial (Pṛthivī-centered) worldview.

No royal genealogies or named historical lineages appear here; the passage references social roles (rājan as addressee, brāhmaṇa gṛhastha as recipient, hotṛ as ritual voice) and invokes a pan-mythic collective (deva–asura) in connection with sāgara-manthana and the emergence of amṛta/navanīta.

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