Shloka 32

Account of Various Sacred Tīrthas

Pilgrimage Merits and Prayāga Supremacy

Devanagari script

गवामयमवाप्नोति वायुलोकं च गच्छति । वेणायाः संगमे स्नात्वा वाजपेयफलं लभेत्

Transliteration

gavāmayamavāpnoti vāyulokaṃ ca gacchati | veṇāyāḥ saṃgame snātvā vājapeyaphalaṃ labhet

Translation

Er erlangt das Verdienst, das mit Kühen verbunden ist, und gelangt auch in die Welt des Vāyu. Wer am Zusammenfluss der Veṇā badet, empfängt die Frucht des Vājapeya-Opfers.

Word by Word

गवामयम्Gavāmaya (a merit/result named thus)

अवाप्नोतिattains

वायुलोकम्the world of Vāyu (Wind-god)

चand

गच्छतिgoes

वेणायाःof (the river) Veṇā

संगमेat the confluence

स्नात्वाhaving bathed

वाजपेयफलम्the fruit of the Vājapeya sacrifice

लभेत्would/should obtain

Speaker

Not specified in the provided excerpt (context needed from surrounding verses to confirm the dialogue frame).

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Geographic Context

Type: tirtha

Sandhi Resolution Notes

Sandhi Resolution Notes: गवामयमवाप्नोति = गवामयम् + अवाप्नोति.

Characters & Entities

Vāyu

Veṇā

Vājapeya

FAQs

What does this verse teach about the power of tīrtha-bathing (snāna)?

It states that bathing at a specific sacred confluence (the Veṇā-saṃgama) grants merit comparable to a major Vedic sacrifice (Vājapeya), presenting tīrtha-snāna as an accessible means to great religious fruit.

Why is Vāyuloka mentioned here?

Vāyuloka functions as a promised heavenly destination (a post-mortem reward), indicating that the act praised—bathing at the Veṇā confluence—yields both merit and an exalted afterlife result.

What ethical or practical lesson does the verse imply?

It encourages pilgrimage discipline and reverence for sacred geography: performing prescribed acts at tīrthas (like bathing at confluences) is portrayed as a legitimate, dharmic path to spiritual merit.