Shloka 56
Account of Various Sacred Tīrthas
Pilgrimage Merits and Prayāga Supremacy
मंदाकिनीं समासाद्य नदीं पापविमोचनीम् । अत्राभिषेकं कुर्वाणः पितृदेवार्चने रतः
maṃdākinīṃ samāsādya nadīṃ pāpavimocanīm | atrābhiṣekaṃ kurvāṇaḥ pitṛdevārcane rataḥ
إذا بلغ نهر ماندَاكيني، مُزيلَ الآثام، فليقم هناك بالاغتسال الطقسي، مواظبًا على عبادة الآباء الأسلاف والآلهة.
Unspecified narrator (contextual instruction within the Svarga-khaṇḍa dialogue; exact speaker not given in the provided excerpt)
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: karuna
Type: river
Sandhi Resolution Notes: अत्राभिषेकं = अत्र + अभिषेकम्; पितृदेवार्चने = पितृदेव + अर्चने (समास/सन्धि).
FAQs
It highlights the Mandākinī as a recognized tīrtha-river whose very association is described as “sin-removing,” indicating the Purāṇic mapping of specific rivers as spiritually potent pilgrimage sites.
The verse frames tīrtha-bathing as incomplete without devotion expressed through worship—here, reverent arcana directed to devas and gratitude toward pitṛs—linking outer ritual to inner devotional intent.
It teaches responsibility and gratitude: spiritual practice includes honoring one’s lineage (pitṛs) and the cosmic order (devas), not merely seeking personal purification through sacred bathing.