KarmaVaani
Vaishnava tradition
वराहVaraha
Adi Varaha · Bhu Varaha · Yajna Varaha
Vishnu as the cosmic boar who dived into the ocean and raised the earth on his tusk.
- Abode
- Vaikuntha; the Bhu Varaha shrine at Tirumala
- Consort
- Bhudevi
- Colour
- Dark blue-grey
- Arms
- 4
Varaha is the third avatar of Vishnu. When the demon Hiranyaksha dragged the earth down into the cosmic ocean, Vishnu took the form of a boar, dived into the waters, killed the demon and lifted the earth goddess Bhudevi back to her place on his tusk. The Vedic Brahmanas already tell of a boar that raised the earth from the waters. At Tirumala pilgrims visit Varaha's shrine before Venkateshwara's, because the hill was first his.
Mantra
ॐ नमो भगवते वराहरूपाय
Om Namo Bhagavate Varaharupaya
Salutations to the Lord in the form of the boar.
How Varaha is shown
A powerful man's body with a boar's head, lifting the earth goddess on his tusk or arm, one foot set on the serpent of the deep.
- Earth on the tusk
- The world rescued and set back in its place.
- Conch
- The primordial sound of creation.
- Discus
- The mind that cuts through ignorance.
- Mace
- Strength in the service of dharma.
Stories
Raising the earth
The Bhagavata tells that a tiny boar, no bigger than a thumb, sprang from Brahma's nostril and grew in moments to the size of a mountain. Grunting with a sound that shook the worlds, he plunged into the ocean, found the earth at its bottom, fought Hiranyaksha for a thousand years and rose with her balanced on his tusk, as the sages sang the Vedas in praise.
