Bhūdevī’s Questions to Varāha
This is the opening scene of the whole Varāha Purāṇa. Bhagavān Vishṇu, in his Varāha (boar) form, has lifted Bhūdevī, the Earth devī, out of the depths of the first ocean. This event comes again in every kalpa (age of the world). Moved by thanks and wonder, Bhūdevī praises him and asks a long set of deep questions. The rest of the Purāṇa is Varāha’s answer to them.
Bhūdevī’s praise (Chapter 1)
Standing before Varāha, Bhūdevī praises him. She tells of his earlier deeds, which she has seen through the cycles of creation:
- “When the Vedas were lost, you took the form of a fish, entered Rasātala, and brought them back to Brahmā.”
- “When the devas and asuras churned the ocean, you held up Mount Mandara as a tortoise.”
- “When I was slipping down to Rasātala, you lifted me on your tusk as Varāha.”
- “When Hiraṇyakaśipu troubled the earth with the varas (boons) he had won, you destroyed him.”
- “You bound Bali as Vāmana.”
- “As Rāma, son of Jamadagni, you cleared the earth of kshatriyas many times.”
- “As Rāma, son of Daśaratha, you killed Rāvaṇa.”
Bhūdevī then praises Varāha with a stotra (hymn of praise) that uses the names of Vishṇu for the different limbs of her body. It is a prayer of protection (kavaca).
Bhūdevī’s questions
After the stotra, Bhūdevī asks seven sets of questions:
- About the true nature of Vishṇu. “What is your form? What is your first creation? I do not know.”
- About the cosmos. “After lifting me, how do you create this whole universe? Why? How do you keep it and rule it?”
- About reaching him. “What is the easy way to reach you?”
- About beginning and end. “What is the beginning of this creation? How does it end?”
- About time. “How are the yugas counted? What is the order of the four yugas? What are the main events in them?”
- About kings. “Which kings performed yajñas? Who reached the highest siddhi?”
- About the state of things. “What is the state (sthiti) of all this?”
She ends:
“Tell me all this in short. Be pleased with me.”
Varāha’s laughter and the vision
Before he answers in words, something wonderful happens. Varāha laughs at Bhūdevī’s praise. In that laughter Bhūdevī has a vision of the whole cosmos.
- She sees inside Varāha’s belly the Rudras, the devas, the Vasus, the Siddhas, and a host of great ṛshis (mahārshis).
- She sees the seven lokas with their suns, moons and planets, all carrying out their own dharma.
- She is overcome and trembles.
When Varāha opens his mouth, she sees within it his four-armed form of Vishṇu, reclining, with Brahmā on the lotus that grows from his navel. She folds her hands and offers another stotra:
“O lotus-eyed Prabhu Vishṇu! O one clothed in yellow, namaskāra to you. O Paramātman, destroyer of the enemies of the devas, namaḥ.”
“O one who rests on Śesha with Lakshmī in your heart, O Deveśa of all the devas, O giver of moksha, namaḥ.”
She calls on the names of Vishṇu for her limbs: Keśava for her feet, Nārāyaṇa for her calves, Mādhava for her waist, Govinda for her secret parts, Vishṇu for her navel, Madhusūdana for her belly, Trivikrama for her thighs, Vāmana for her heart, Śrīdhara for her throat, Hṛshīkeśa for her face, Padmanābha for her eyes, and Dāmodara for her head.
Varāha’s reply
Varāha praises Bhūdevī’s question:
“O Suśroṇī! Your question is very fitting. Not everyone has the insight for such a question. This is a matter of the Purāṇas, to be answered with the knowledge of all the śāstras. I will speak.”
He then gives the well-known definition of a Purāṇa (Purāṇa-lakshaṇa):
“All the Purāṇas share one śloka: a Purāṇa has five marks. They are Sṛshṭi (creation), Laya (dissolution), Vaṃśa (family lines), Manvantarāḥ (the ages of the Manus) and Rāja-vaṃsha (the histories of the royal dynasties).”
This exchange in Chapters 1 and 2 sets the frame for the whole Purāṇa. All the chapters that follow are Varāha’s answers to Bhūdevī’s questions.
Sources
- Varāha Mahā Purāṇa, Chapters 1–2