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Varuni () refers both to a intoxicating beverage and the devi of liquor and intoxication in Hindu mythology. The drink Varuni is generally described as a fragrant wine made from date palm. The goddess Varuni, is associated not only with the drink Varuni but with all intoxicating beverages. She is commonly described in mythology as the daughter of Varuna, the god of water, though she is sometimes attested as his wife elsewhere. When both a wife and a daughter of Varuna are attested in a text, they are distinguished by naming conventions: when the daughter—who is the goddess of wine—is referred to as Varuni, the wife is called Varunani; and when the wife is named Varuni, the daughter is called by the common term for liquor— Surā. In mythology, the goddess emerges during the Samudra Manthan (churning of the ocean), bringing the drink with herself and chooses the companionship of either the Devas or the Asuras, depending on the version. Elsewhere, Varuni as a goddess is depicted offering wine to the deity Balarama, further linking her to divine intoxication in devotional literature.
In the goddess orient Shaktism of Hinduism, Varuni is also the name of a Matrika—personification of Varuna's energy.
The Madanapāla Nighaṇṭu (varga 8.170) and the Bhaṭṭa Nṛsiṃha’s commentary on the Bṛhat-Saṃhitā detail the preparation of Varuni using ground śāli rice and the medicinal plant punarnavā ( Boerhavia diffusa), a root commonly used in Ayurvedic formulations. Other references, such as Sarngadhara Samhita (2.10.7ab), confirm that Varuni is made by fermenting the juice of tāla and kharjūra trees.
Texts like the Aṣṭāṅga Hṛdaya Sūtrasthāna (5.68) further distinguish Varuni as the upper, transparent portion—or scum—of surā, identifying it synonymously with prasanna. This version is also known as śvetasurā, or "white liquor", in later interpretations. However, some commentators, contest this and argue that vāruṇī is a distinct preparation involving punarnavā roots and rice flour, separate from the refined filtrate of surā.
Another variation records that Varuni joins Shesha, the serpent king sometimes identified with Balarama, the brother of Krishna, who is traditionally associated with wine.
In some sources, the goddess is referred to as Madira, a generic term for liquor in Sanskrit literature. Although it is uncertain whether this Madira is identical with Surā/Varuni, the association reflects a fluid mythological identity centered around the feminine personification of alcohol. The Arthashastra, for instance, mentions a goddess named Madira as one of the tutelary deities established in fortified cities, indicating a ritual dimension to her worship.
During the churning of the ocean—undertaken by both the gods and Asuras to retrieve the elixir of immortality (Amrita)—a series of divine treasures emerged. Among them was the drink Sura, carried by a goddess. In the Mahabharata, the goddess Sura with the drink arises alongside other celestial entities such as Sri (goddess of fortune), Chandra (the moon), and the divine horse Ucchaishravas. These beings follow the solar path to the gods, signifying divine acceptance. A separate passage in the Mahabharata provides genealogical context: Sura is identified as the daughter of Varuna and Jyeshtha, and the sister of Bala, with her maternal grandfather being Shukra—a sage later associated with prohibitions on liquor.
In the Ramayana, the goddess is specifically named Varuni and described as the daughter of Varuna, the deity of cosmic waters. She is presented as seeking acceptance from both the anti-gods and gods, but is rejected by the former and accepted by the latter. This distinction becomes etymologically significant: those who accept Sura (the goddess and the drink) become Suras (gods), while those who reject her become Asuras (anti-gods). At this point in mythic chronology, there is no moral stigma attached to Varuni; she remains a divine gift and a symbol of celestial pleasure.
Later Puranas texts, including the Bhagavata Purana, depict a variant of this episode. After the goddess Lakshmi chooses Vishnu, the disheartened Asuras are said to accept Varuni, described here as a "lotus-eyed maiden." Their acceptance of her, with the consent of Vishnu, reinforces their subordinate status—receiving a lesser reward. In this version, Varuni becomes a consolation for the defeated Asuras, and her acceptance by them implies a growing ambivalence toward the consumption of intoxicants.
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