Vedic origins , housed in
LACMA. The origin of Varaha is found in the
Vedas, the oldest Hindu scriptures.
Arthur Berriedale Keith also agrees with Macdonell; interpreting the mountain as a cloud and the slaying a retelling of the killing of the
asura Vritra by Indra. Vishnu is both the sacrifice as well as the "bringer of sacrifice"; the boar being the sacrifice. The tale is also recalled in
Charaka Brahmana and
Kathaka Brahmana; the latter calls the boar Emusha. The
Shatapatha Brahmana narrates that the universe was primordial waters. The earth which was the size of a hand, was trapped in it. Prajapati in the form of a boar (
varaha) plunges into the waters and brings the earth out. He also marries the earth thereafter. The
Shatapatha Brahmana calls the boar as Emusha, which Keith relates to the boar's epithet
emusha in the Rigveda. In the
Taittiriya Samhita (7.1.5), Prajapati - who was roaming as the wind - acquires the form of a "
cosmogonic" boar lifting the earth goddess from the primeval waters. As
Vishvakarma (the creator of the world), he flattened her, thus she - the earth - was called
Prithvi, "the extended one". They produce various deities. The
Taittiriya Brahmana (1.1.3.6) expands the
Taittiriya Samhita narrative.
Creation legend , 1600 CE. The
Ayodhya Kanda book of the
Ramayana refers to Varaha retaining his connection to Prajapati as Brahma. In a cosmogonic myth, Brahma appears in the primal universe full of water and takes the form of a boar to lift the earth from the waters; creation begins with Brahma and his progeny. The
Yuddha Kanda book of the Ramayana praises
Rama (identified with Vishnu) as "the single-tusked boar", an allusion linking Varaha with Vishnu. In the
Mahabharata,
Narayana ("one who lies in the waters", an appellation of Brahma which was later transferred to Vishnu) is praised as the one who rescues the earth as a boar. The Puranas complete the full transition of Varaha from Prajapati-Brahma to the avatar of Narayana-Vishnu. The
Brahmanda Purana, the
Vayu Purana, the
Vishnu Purana, the
Linga Purana, the
Markendeya Purana, the
Kurma Purana, the
Garuda Purana, the
Padma Purana and the
Shiva Purana have similar narratives of the cosmogonic myth, wherein Brahma, identified with Vishnu, takes the Varaha form to raise the earth from the primeval waters. The
Brahmanda Purana, one of the oldest
Puranas, narrates that in the present
kalpa ("aeon") called
Varaha kalpa, Brahma wakes from his slumber. Brahma is called Narayana ("he who lies in the waters"). The
Vayu Purana says that Brahma roams as the wind in the waters, alluding to the Vedic
Taittiriya Brahmana version. The detailed
Brahmanda Purana version says that Brahma is "invisible" and a shorter summary says that he becomes the wind. In the
Brahmanda Purana, realizing that the earth was in the waters, Brahma takes the form of Varaha, as the boar likes to sport in the water. Similar reasons for taking the boar form particularly are also given in the
Linga Purana, the
Matsya Purana and the
Vayu Purana. The
Vishnu Purana and the
Markendeya Purana add that Brahma-Narayana takes the Varaha form, like the fish (Matsya) and tortoise (Kurma) in previous
kalpas. The
Brahma Purana,
Venkatacala Mahatmya (in the
Skanda Purana), and
Vishnu Smriti narrate the tale with slight variation, but without Brahma; Vishnu alone becomes Varaha to lift the sunken earth from the waters. Early texts like the
Brahmanda Purana and the
Vayu Purana build up on the
Taittiriya Brahmana Vedic cosmogonic concept of
Yajna-varaha (Varaha as sacrifice). The
Brahmanda Purana describes the boar form as composed of Vedic sacrifices and his body parts are compared with various implements or participants of a
yajna (sacrifice). This description of
Yajna-varaha was adopted in other Puranas (
Brahma Purana,
Bhagavata Purana,
Matsya Purana,
Padma Purana,
Venkatacala Mahatmya of the
Skanda Purana,
Vishnudharmottara Purana),
Harivamsa,
Smriti texts (including
Vishnu Smriti,),
Tantras and
Adi Shankara's commentary on the
Vishnu Sahasranama explaining the epithet
Yajnanga ("whose body is
yajna"). The
Vishnu Purana, the
Bhagavata Purana and the
Padma Purana embeds the sacrificial description within a paean to Varaha by the sages of
Janaloka after Varah saves the earth. Roshen Dalal describes the symbolism of his iconography based on the
Vishnu Purana as follows: Another late insertion describes Vishnu lifting the earth as well as defeating the
Danavas (demons). Late passages start the association of Hiranyaksha with Varaha. Vishnu is praised as Varaha, the vanquisher of Hiranyaksha in three instances.
Saviour of the ancestors In an instance in the
Mahabharata after raising the earth, Vishnu as Varaha, shakes his tusk and three balls of mud fall in the South, which he declares as the three
pindas (riceballs) to be given to the
Pitrs (ancestors). Varaha's association with the three
pindas is reiterated in later texts like the epic's appendix
Harivamsa, the
Vishnudharmottara Purana and the
Brahma Purana. This tale constitutes the mythology of
Pitr-yajna or
Shraddha, sacrifice to the ancestors. The
Brahma Purana narrates about Varaha's deliverance of the Pitrs (manes). Once, the Pitrs lust for Urja (also known as Svadha and Koka), the daughter of the moon-god
Chandra. Cursed by Chandra, the Pitrs fall as humans on the
Himalayan mountains from their elevated positions, while Koka transforms into a river in the mountains. The demons attack the Pitrs, who hides under a slab in the Koka river. Eulogized by the Pitrs, Varaha uplifted the drowning Pitrs from the river by his tusks. Then, he performs the rites of Shraddha by performing
libations and
pindas to the Pitrs with the Earth acting as Chaya - his consort in the rituals. Varaha liberated the Pitrs from the curse and blessed Koka to be reborn as Svadha (the food or oblations offered to Pitrs) and become the wife of the Pitrs. Further, Narakasura (also called Bhauma) was born to the earth due to her contact with Varaha. Also, Varaha's temple was established at
Kokamukha, where Varaha freed the Pitrs.
Children The
Vishnu Purana, the
Brahma Purana and the
Bhagavata Purana, in the episode of the killing of the demon
Narakasura by
Krishna avatar of Vishnu, mentions that he was the foster son of Varaha and the earth goddess Bhumi. In some versions of the tale, Vishnu-Varaha promises the earth that he will not kill their son, without any consent. In Krishna form, Vishnu slays the demon with the support of
Satyabhama, Krishna's consort and the avatar of Bhumi. The
Brahmavaivarta Purana narrates that Varaha slew Hiranyaksha and rescued the earth from the waters. Varaha and the earth goddess were attracted to each other and made love. After they regained consciousness, Varaha worshipped the earth and decreed that the earth be worshipped at specific occasions, such as the construction of a house, lakes, wells, dams, etc. From their union,
Mangala, the god of the planet
Mars, was born. The
Avantikshetra Mahatmya of the
Skanda Purana states that after slaying Hiranyaksha, the
Shipra River springs from the heart of Varaha. Thus, the sacred river is described as the daughter of Varaha.
In avatar listings . Varaha holds the earth as a globe. The
Mahabharata lays the foundation for the
avatar concept in Vishnu theology; the term
pradurbhava ("manifestation") appears in the early lists, instead the term
avatar. Varaha is listed as one of the four incarnations of Narayana-Vishnu who "relieve the burden of the earth" in an early list; in another list which may be a later addition to the epic, Varaha is one among eight
pradurbhavas. Some manuscripts of the epic expand this list into the classical ten
Dashavatara list; with Varaha listed as third or fourth
pradurbhava. Varaha is also referred to
Yajna-Varaha ("sacrifice boar") in some instances. The
Agni Purana, while narrating tales of the Dashavatara in sequence, briefly mentions that the Hiranyaksa, a chief of
asuras (demons), defeated the gods and captured
Svarga (heaven). Vishnu, in his third avatar as Varaha, slew the demons. The
Linga Purana mentions that Vishnu takes the avatars due to a curse by the sage
Bhrigu. It mentions Varaha as the third of the Dashavatara. The
Narada Purana, the
Shiva Purana and the
Padma Purana concurs placing Varaha as third of ten avatars. The
Bhagavata Purana and
Garuda Purana mention Varaha as the second of 22 avatars. They describe Varaha, "the lord of sacrifices", as rescuing the earth from the netherworld or from the waters. In two other passages of the
Garuda Purana, Varaha is mentioned as third of the classical Dashavatara. The
Narada Purana has a variant of
Caturvyuha with Krishna, Varaha,
Vamana and
Balarama (Haladhara) as the four emanations.
Other legends and textual references . The
Linga Purana, the
Shiva Purana and the
Shaiva Khanda Book of the
Skanda Purana mention Vishnu taking the Varaha form in the tale of the base of Shiva as the
lingam (the aniconic symbol of Shiva) along with Brahma taking the Hamsa form in the tale of the tip of Shiva as the lingam (the aniconic symbol of Shiva). Once, Brahma and Vishnu contest for superiority. A large, fiery pillar which was Shiva himself as the lingam appears. Brahma as a
hamsa (swan) flies up to find its top; while Varaha as large
varaha (boar) digs down to find its bottom. However, both fail the ends of the lingam. Shiva appears in the place of lingam and enlightens them that he is the Supreme Being. The
Shiva Purana says that Vishnu chose the boar form due to the animal's inborn ability to burrow in this story. It also notes that the current kalpa is known as
Varaha-kalpa due to Vishnu's form as Varaha in the beginning of the kalpa when this incident happened. This tale is iconographically depicted in the
Lingodbhava icon of Shiva where Shiva is shown as emerging from a fiery cosmic pillar which is he himself, while Vishnu as Varaha is seen at the base going down and Brahma as Hamsa is seen at the top going up. The Lingodbhava icon of the Shiva-worshipping
Shaiva sect was aimed to counter the avatar theory of Vishnu that presented him as the Supreme Being. The icon elevated Shiva to the Supreme Being position and demoted Vishnu as inferior to Shiva by belittling the Varaha avatar of his by defeating him. Similarly, the
Sharabha form of Shiva belittled
Narasimha, the lion-man avatar of Vishnu by killing him. Another legend in the minor Purana named
Kalika Purana also depicts the sectarian conflicts between the
Vaishnava and Shaiva sects. Varaha also appears in the
Shakta (Goddess-oriented) narrative in the final episode of the
Devi Mahatmya text embedded in the
Markendeya Purana. Vishnu as Varaha creates his
shakti Varahi (along with other deities, together called the eight
matrika goddesses) to aid the
Great Goddess to fight the demon
Raktabija and they kill him. The scripture
Varaha Purana is believed to be narrated by Vishnu to Bhumi, as Varaha. The Purana is devoted more to the "myths and genealogies" connected to the worship of Vishnu. The
Agni Purana,
Brahma Purana, the
Markendeya Purana, the
Vishnu Purana say that Vishnu resides as Varaha in Ketumala-
varsha, one of the regions outside the mountains surrounding
Mount Meru. The
Bhagavata Purana says that Vishnu dwells as Varaha with Bhumi in the Uttara Kuru-
varsha. The
Vayu Purana describes an island called Varaha-dvipa near Jambudvipa, where only Vishnu as Varaha is worshipped. ==Iconography==