Shloka 15
Narmadā-tīrtha-māhātmya — Bhṛgu-tīrtha to Sāgara-saṅgama
Pilgrimage Circuit, Gifts, Fasting, and Imperishable Merit
ततो गच्छेत राजेन्द्र कन्यातीर्थमनुत्तमम् / शुक्लपक्षे तृतीयायां स्नानं तत्र समाचरेत् / स्नातमात्रो नरस्तत्र पृथिव्यामेकराड् भवेत्
tato gaccheta rājendra kanyātīrthamanuttamam / śuklapakṣe tṛtīyāyāṃ snānaṃ tatra samācaret / snātamātro narastatra pṛthivyāmekarāḍ bhavet
ثمّ، يا أفضلَ الملوك، فليتوجّه المرءُ إلى «كانْيا تيرثا» الذي لا مثيل له. وفي اليوم الثالث القمري (تريتييا) من النصف المضيء، فليؤدِّ هناك الغُسلَ الطقسي على الوجه اللائق. وبمجرد الاغتسال هناك يصير الإنسانُ ملكًا منفردًا على الأرض.
Sūta (narrating the Kurma Purana’s tirtha-instructions to the assembled sages, in the style of puranic upadesha)
Primary Rasa: adbhuta
Secondary Rasa: shanta
FAQs
This verse does not directly define Ātman; it teaches a dharma-oriented principle that sacred action (tīrtha-snānā) performed with proper timing and discipline yields powerful worldly results, which in the Purāṇic framework ultimately supports the seeker’s broader pursuit of puruṣārthas, including mokṣa.
The practice highlighted is tīrtha-snānā (ritual bathing) done on an auspicious tithi (śukla tṛtīyā). In Kurma Purana’s wider discipline, such regulated observances function as preparatory purification (śuddhi) that complements higher yogic and devotional paths, including the Purāṇic synthesis of Śaiva-Vaiṣṇava worship.
This specific verse is a tīrtha-vidhi statement and does not explicitly mention Śiva or Viṣṇu; however, within the Kurma Purana’s integrative theology, tīrtha observances are generally understood as honoring the one sacred order (dharma) upheld through both Śaiva and Vaiṣṇava forms.