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
Hat man den Mandākinī‑Fluss erreicht, den Befreier von Sünden, so vollziehe man dort das rituelle Bad, eifrig in der Verehrung der Pitṛs und der Götter.
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.