Shloka 68

Vṛṣotsarga (Bull-Release Gift): Procedure, Merit, and Narratives on Dharma, Karma, and Liberation

Devanagari script

वेङ्कटी नाम तत्रैव देवी महिषमर्दिनी / चन्द्रतीर्थं भद्रवटः कावेरीकुटिलाचलौ

Transliteration

veṅkaṭī nāma tatraiva devī mahiṣamardinī / candratīrthaṃ bhadravaṭaḥ kāverīkuṭilācalau

Translation

Dort selbst ist die Göttin namens Veṅkaṭī, Mahīṣamardinī, die Bezwingerin des Büffeldämons. Dort sind auch Candratīrtha, Bhadravaṭa sowie die Gegend von Kāverī und der Berg Kuṭilācala.

Word by Word

• वेङ्कटी: Veṅkaṭī (name of a goddess/place)
• वेङ्कटी: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वेङ्कटी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• नाम: namely/by name
• नाम: Sambandha/Specifier (नामनिर्देश)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: नामन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय; नाम-शब्दः (particle: ‘by name/namely’)

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक-अव्यय (locative adverb)

• एव: indeed/just
• एव: Emphasis (निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निपात (emphatic particle)

• देवी: the goddess
• देवी: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: देवी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• महिषमर्दिनी: slayer of the buffalo(-demon)
• महिषमर्दिनी: Karta (Subject-complement/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: महिष + मर्दिनी (प्रातिपदिक; √मृद्/मर्द् (धातु) + णिनि-प्रत्यय)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; विशेषण (देवी-विशेषण)

• चन्द्रतीर्थम्: Candratīrtha (Moon sacred ford)
• चन्द्रतीर्थम्: Karma/Listing item (उद्देश्य/नामनिर्देश)
• Type: Noun
• Root: चन्द्र + तीर्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति (1st/2nd Nom/Acc), एकवचन; नाम (तीर्थ-नाम)

• भद्रवटः: Bhadravaṭa (auspicious banyan/place)
• भद्रवटः: Karta/Listing item (नामनिर्देश)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भद्र + वट (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; नाम (वट-वृक्ष/स्थान-नाम)

• कावेरी: Kāverī (river)
• कावेरी: Qualifier within compound (समासाङ्ग)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कावेरी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; समासपूर्वपद (कावेरी-नदी)

• कुटिल: crooked/curving
• कुटिल: Qualifier within compound (समासाङ्ग)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: कुटिल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: समासपूर्वपद; विशेषणार्थ (crooked/curving)

• अचलौ: the two mountains called Kāverī-Kuṭilācala
• अचलौ: Karta/Listing item (नामनिर्देश)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अचल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), द्विवचन; समस्तपद: कावेरी-कुटिल-अचलौ (two mountains)

Speaker

Lord Vishnu (speaking to Garuda/Vinata-putra)

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Sacred geography as a support for devotion—remembering/visiting Devi and tīrthas purifies and steadies the mind.

Vedantic Theme: Īśvara-smṛti as citta-śuddhi (purification of mind) preparing for higher knowledge.

Application: Undertake tīrtha-yātrā with sankalpa; recite Devī/Vishnu names while visiting; treat rivers and hills as living sacred presences (non-exploitative conduct).

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Geographic Context

Type: devi-kṣetra, tīrtha, river-region, mountain

Cross References

Related Themes: Garuda Purana 2.6 (tīrtha-māhātmya / route listing context); Related tīrtha lists elsewhere in Garuda Purana (general parallel passages on snāna-phala)

Characters & Entities

• Veṅkaṭī (Devī)
• Mahiṣamardinī
• Candratīrtha
• Bhadravaṭa
• Kāverī
• Kuṭilācala

FAQs

What is the importance of sacred tirthas like Candratīrtha in the Garuda Purana?

This verse treats specific tirthas and deity-sites as spiritually potent locations; remembering or visiting them is presented in the Preta Kanda context as a means to gain merit and purification supportive of auspicious post-death outcomes.

How does this verse explain the path of the soul?

Indirectly: by naming holy places and a protective form of the Goddess (Mahiṣamardinī), the text signals that dharmic acts—such as tirtha-smarana, pilgrimage, and devotion—contribute to merit that influences the soul’s journey described elsewhere in the Preta Kanda.

Practical application of this wisdom today?

Maintain devotion and ethical living supported by sacred remembrance: recite or remember revered tirthas and Divine names, and when possible undertake disciplined pilgrimage with charity and purity of conduct.