Shloka 72

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

Devanagari script

निमज्ज्य यत्र काकोला राजहंसत्वमाययुः / असुरो यत्र देवत्वमवाप स्नानमात्रतः

Transliteration

nimajjya yatra kākolā rājahaṃsatvamāyayuḥ / asuro yatra devatvamavāpa snānamātrataḥ

Translation

Durch das Bad und das Untertauchen dort gelangten selbst Krähen in den Stand „königlicher Schwäne“; und dort erlangte ein Asura allein durch das Baden die Würde eines Deva.

Word by Word

• निमज्ज्य: having immersed/bathed
• निमज्ज्य: Purvakala-kriya (पूर्वक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: नि + √मज्ज् (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वा-प्रत्ययान्त अव्ययभाव (gerund/absolutive); पूर्वकालिक-क्रिया (having bathed/immersed)

• यत्र: where
• यत्र: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; सम्बन्ध/देशवाचक (relative adverb: where)

• काकोला: crows (kākolaḥ)
• काकोला: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: काकोल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन

• राजहंसत्वम्: the state of being royal swans
• राजहंसत्वम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: राजहंस + त्व (प्रातिपदिक; -त्व प्रत्यय)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; भाववाचक (state/condition)

• आययुः: attained/reached
• आययुः: Kriya (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: आ + √या (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), बहुवचन; परस्मैपद

• असुरः: an asura (demon)
• असुरः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: असुर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• यत्र: where
• यत्र: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; सम्बन्ध/देशवाचक (relative adverb: where)

• देवत्वम्: godhood/divine status
• देवत्वम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: देव + त्व (प्रातिपदिक; -त्व प्रत्यय)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; भाववाचक

• अवाप: attained
• अवाप: Kriya (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √आप् (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• स्नानमात्रतः: merely by bathing alone
• स्नानमात्रतः: Hetu/Reason (कारण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: स्नान + मात्र + तस् (प्रातिपदिक + तसिल्-प्रत्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; तसिलन्त (ablatival adverb: ‘from/merely by’)

Speaker

Lord Vishnu (speaking to Garuda/Vinata-putra)

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Purificatory acts at sacred waters can rapidly transmute karmic conditions; symbolism: from impurity/inauspiciousness (crow) to purity/discrimination (haṃsa).

Vedantic Theme: Citta-śuddhi through śraddhā and sādhana; transformation is ultimately by grace operating through dharmic means.

Application: Use ritual bathing as a vow to change conduct: after snāna, commit to truthfulness, non-harm, and daily remembrance; interpret ‘crow-to-swan’ as moving from scattered mind to discerning mind.

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Geographic Context

Type: tīrtha (bathing ford/pool)

Cross References

Related Themes: Garuda Purana 2.6.71–72 (tīrtha-māhātmya: Haṃsa-tīrtha and transformative snāna-phala)

Characters & Entities

• Asura
• Devas
• Kākola (crows)
• Rājahaṃsa (royal swan)

FAQs

What is the importance of tirtha-snana (holy bathing) in the Garuda Purana?

This verse presents tirtha-snana as exceptionally transformative—so purifying that it is poetically described as elevating even the impure (crows) to the pure (royal swans) and granting an asura deva-like status, emphasizing the potency of sacred-place merit (punya).

How does this verse explain the path of the soul in Preta Kanda context?

Preta Kanda repeatedly stresses purification and merit as supports for the departed and the living; here, the verse highlights that acts like sacred bathing can quickly generate punya and reduce the burden of negative karma, aiding one’s auspicious destiny.

Practical application of this wisdom today?

Treat purification as both outer and inner: if visiting a tirtha, bathe with restraint, prayer, and ethical intent; otherwise, practice daily cleanliness, mantra/japa, and truthful conduct—so the ‘snana’ becomes a disciplined karmic reset rather than a mere ritual.