Shloka 20

Brahmin Right Conduct: Morning Remembrance, Bathing, Purification, and Tarpaṇa Method

Devanagari script

प्रातःस्नानं महापुण्यं सर्वपापप्रणाशनम् । यः कुर्यात्सततं विप्रो विष्णुलोके महीयते

Transliteration

prātaḥsnānaṃ mahāpuṇyaṃ sarvapāpapraṇāśanam | yaḥ kuryātsatataṃ vipro viṣṇuloke mahīyate

Translation

Das Bad im Morgengrauen ist höchst verdienstvoll und vernichtet alle Sünden. Der Brāhmaṇa, der es beständig vollzieht, wird in Viṣṇus Welt geehrt.

Word by Word

• prātaḥ-snānam: morning bath
• prātaḥ-snānam: Kartā (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prātaḥ (अव्यय) + snāna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Avyayībhāva compound; Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular (एकवचन)

• mahā-puṇyam: greatly meritorious
• mahā-puṇyam: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mahā (उपसर्ग/पूर्वपद-प्रातिपदिक) + puṇya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Karmadhāraya compound; Neuter, Nominative, Singular; predicate adjective of prātaḥ-snānam

• sarva-pāpa-praṇāśanam: destroyer of all sins
• sarva-pāpa-praṇāśanam: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक) + pāpa (प्रातिपदिक) + praṇāśana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Tatpuruṣa compound; Neuter, Nominative, Singular; predicate adjective of prātaḥ-snānam

• yaḥ: who (he who)
• yaḥ: Kartā (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Pronoun (सर्वनाम); Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• kuryāt: should do
• kuryāt: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: kṛ (धातु)
• Form: √kṛ; Vidhi-liṅ (optative), 3rd person, Singular; Parasmaipada

• satataṃ: always/continually
• satataṃ: Kāla (काल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: satatam (अव्यय/प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Avyaya, adverb (क्रियाविशेषण)

• vipraḥ: a brāhmaṇa
• vipraḥ: Kartā (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vipra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular; apposition to yaḥ

• viṣṇu-loke: in Viṣṇu’s world
• viṣṇu-loke: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: viṣṇu (प्रातिपदिक) + loka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Tatpuruṣa compound; Masculine, Locative (7th), Singular

• mahīyate: is honored/glorified
• mahīyate: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: mah (धातु)
• Form: Verb; Dhātu: √mah (मह्) ‘to honor’; Present tense (लट्), 3rd person, Singular; Ātmanepada (आत्मनेपद) passive-like sense ‘is honored/glorified’

Speaker

Unspecified (narratorial instruction within Sṛṣṭikhaṇḍa context)

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: adbhuta

Geographic Context

Type: tirtha

Sandhi Resolution Notes

Sandhi Resolution Notes: kuryātsatataṃ → kuryāt + satatam (final -t before s); prātaḥsnānam → prātaḥ + snānam (Avyayībhāva).

Characters & Entities

• Vishnu

FAQs

What practice is praised in this verse?

The verse praises prātaḥ-snānā (bathing at dawn) as a daily discipline that brings great religious merit and removes sins.

How does this verse relate to Vaishnava spiritual goals?

It connects purity-practices with a Vaiṣṇava end—honor in Viṣṇuloka—implying that regular dharmic conduct supports devotion-oriented liberation ideals.

What ethical lesson does the verse teach?

Consistency in simple, disciplined purity practices is presented as spiritually transformative—regular conduct (satataṃ) is valued over occasional effort.