The
Varaha Purana is a Sanskrit text from the Puranas genre of literature in
Hinduism. It belongs to the Vaishnavism literature corpus praising Narayana
(Vishnu), but includes chapters dedicated to praising and centered on Shiva
and Shakti (goddesses it calls Brahmi, Vaishnavi and Raudri).The text exists
in many versions, with major sections lost to history. The text has been
estimated to have been first completed between 10th to 12th-century, and
continuously revised thereafter. The surviving manuscripts of this text are
notable, like Linga Purana, because they do not cover the required
Panchalakshana (five characteristics) expected in a Purana. Scholars have
questioned if it really qualifies as a Purana, and whether the extant
manuscripts are merely a religious manual largely focussed on Vaishnava
practices, with sections that also praise Shiva, Shakti and other gods in a
secular way. |