Vamana Purana — Saptasarasvata Tirtha, Shloka 10

Harihara Revelation and the Tirtha-Glorification of Saptasarasvata in Kurukshetra

Devanagari script

दधिस्नाने चुतःषष्टिर्द्वात्रिंशद्धविषोर्ऽहणे पञ्चगव्यस्य शुद्धस्य कुम्भाः षोडश कीर्तिताः

Transliteration

dadhisnāne cutaḥṣaṣṭirdvātriṃśaddhaviṣor'haṇe pañcagavyasya śuddhasya kumbhāḥ ṣoḍaśa kīrtitāḥ

Translation

“For a curd-bath (dadhi-snāna), sixty-four (pitchers are prescribed); for a ghee-bath (haviṣ/ghṛta), thirty-two. For purified pañcagavya, sixteen pitchers are declared.”

Word by Word

• dadhi-snāne: in the curd-bath
• dadhi-snāne: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dadhi (दधि प्रातिपदिक) + snāna (स्नान प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (दध्नि स्नानम्/दधिस्नानम्), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• catuḥ-ṣaṣṭiḥ: sixty-four
• catuḥ-ṣaṣṭiḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: catuḥ (चतुर् प्रातिपदिक) + ṣaṣṭi (षष्टि प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: संख्यावाचक-द्वन्द्व (64), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• dvā-triṃśat: thirty-two
• dvā-triṃśat: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dvā (द्वि प्रातिपदिक) + triṃśat (त्रिंशत् प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: संख्यावाचक-द्वन्द्व (32), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• haviṣoḥ: of the two oblations
• haviṣoḥ: Sambandha (सम्बन्धः)
• Type: Noun
• Root: havis (हविस् प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (Genitive/6th), द्विवचन (dual)

• ahaṇe: on the day
• ahaṇe: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ahan (अहन् प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative/7th), एकवचन; वैदिक/छान्दस रूप (ahaṇe = ahani)

• pañca-gavyasya: of pañcagavya (five cow-products)
• pañca-gavyasya: Sambandha (सम्बन्धः)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pañca (पञ्च प्रातिपदिक) + gavya (गव्य प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: द्विगु-समास (पञ्चानां गव्यानाम् समाहारः), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; पञ्चगव्य = five cow-products mixture

• śuddhasya: pure
• śuddhasya: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śuddha (शुद्ध प्रातिपदिक/कृदन्त)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण (pure)

• kumbhāḥ: pots
• kumbhāḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kumbha (कुम्भ प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• ṣoḍaśa: sixteen
• ṣoḍaśa: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ṣoḍaśan (षोडशन्/षोडश प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: संख्यावाचक, नपुंसकलिङ्ग/अव्ययवत्; अत्र कुम्भाः इत्यस्य विशेषणरूपेण (sixteen)

• kīrtitāḥ: are stated
• kīrtitāḥ: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: kīrt (कीर्त् धातु)
• Form: कृदन्त—क्त (past passive participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; कर्मणि (are declared/mentioned)

Speakers

• Unspecified ritual instructor/narrator continuing the Saromahatmya prescriptions

Primary Deities

• Ishvara

Key Themes

• Ritual standardization by number
• Purificatory substances (cow-products)
• Hierarchy of offerings (milk/curd/ghee/pañcagavya)
• Tirtha-related vow and worship

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

{ "primaryRasa": "shanta", "secondaryRasa": "", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }

FAQs

Why do the prescribed quantities decrease from curd (64) to ghee (32) to pañcagavya (16)?

Purāṇic ritual manuals often grade substances by potency, cost, and symbolic concentration. The descending numbers can reflect increasing ‘concentration’ or ritual efficacy per unit, and also practical considerations (ghee and pañcagavya being more intensive to prepare).

What is pañcagavya and why is it called ‘śuddha’ (purified)?

Pañcagavya is a sanctified mixture of five cow-products used for purification and consecration. ‘Śuddha’ indicates it must be properly prepared/strained/ritually fit, not merely raw, aligning with the text’s emphasis on eligibility for divine worship.

Does ‘haviṣ’ definitely mean ghee here?

Haviṣ broadly denotes an oblation (often ghee-based). In bathing prescriptions alongside milk and curd, the most coherent reading is ghṛta (clarified butter) used as an abhiṣeka substance; the verse’s parallel structure supports this interpretation.