Srimad Bhagavatam — Panchama Skandha, Shloka 10
Viṣṇupadī Gaṅgā: Descent, Cosmic Pathways, and Śiva’s Praise of Saṅkarṣaṇa
अन्ये च नदा नद्यश्च वर्षे वर्षे सन्ति बहुशो मेर्वादिगिरिदुहितर: शतश: ॥ १० ॥
anye ca nadā nadyaś ca varṣe varṣe santi bahuśo merv-ādi-giri-duhitaraḥ śataśaḥ.
Many other rivers, both big and small, flow from the top of Mount Meru. These rivers are like daughters of the mountain, and they flow to the various tracts of land in hundreds of branches.
FAQs
This verse states that each varṣa has many rivers and streams—hundreds—described as arising from great mountains such as Mount Meru.
In the cosmological narration, Śukadeva explains the geography of the varṣas: mountains are presented as sources, and rivers as their ‘daughters,’ emphasizing their origin from the great ranges like Meru.
It encourages a sacred outlook toward nature—seeing rivers and mountains as part of the Lord’s ordered creation—cultivating gratitude, humility, and reverence rather than exploitation.