Varaha Purana

वाराहपुराण

The Varaha Purana (~24,000 verses, 217 chapters) — one of the 18 Mahapuranas, narrated by Vishnu as Varaha (Boar avatar, 3rd Dashavatara) to Bhudevi (Earth goddess). Unique structure: a sustained dialogue between rescuer and rescued. Core myth: Hiranyaksha (extractive principle) seizes Earth and submerges her; Vishnu dives as cosmic Boar and lifts her back. Ch1 Varaha Avatara: 'vārāhaṃ rūpamāsthāya...rasātalaṃ gatvā' — the divine takes the form most suited to reach the suffering, descends to the deepest point, and restores dignity (not just removes harm); Hiranyaksha = extractive principle vs. Bhudevi = sustaining principle (planetary boundaries). Ch2 Bhudevi Samvada: Earth as active philosophical questioner — 'ko dharmaḥ paramo loke?'; Vishnu's answer: 'sarvabhūtahitaṃ dharmaṃ...ahiṃsā paramo dharmaḥ' — non-harm is the highest dharma for all beings. Ch3 Prapatti Yoga: four limbs of complete surrender — ānukūlya-saṃkalpa (alignment), prātikūlya-varjana (abandoning opposition), rakṣiṣyatīti viśvāsa (trust in protection), goptṛtve varaṇa (active choice of the divine as protector); prapatti as the adult form of secure attachment.