Shloka 4

Description of Continents, Oceans, Regions, and the Measure of the World

Devanagari script

गौरस्तु मध्यमे द्वीपे गिरिर्मनःशिलो महान् । पर्वतः पश्चिमे कृष्णो नारायणसखो द्विजाः

Transliteration

gaurastu madhyame dvīpe girirmanaḥśilo mahān | parvataḥ paścime kṛṣṇo nārāyaṇasakho dvijāḥ

Translation

Auf dem mittleren Dvīpa befindet sich der große Berg namens Manaḥśilā, o Zweifachgeborene. Im Westen steht der Berg Kṛṣṇa, ein Gefährte Nārāyaṇas, o Brāhmaṇas.

Word by Word

• gauraḥ: Gaura (name)
• gauraḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gaura (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular)

• tu: indeed/but
• tu: Sambandha/Discourse particle (सम्बन्ध/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निपात/समुच्चयार्थ-भेदक (particle: ‘but/indeed’)

• madhyame: in the middle (one)
• madhyame: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: madhyama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन (Singular); विशेषण (qualifying)

• dvīpe: in the island/continent
• dvīpe: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dvīpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन (Singular)

• giriḥ: mountain
• giriḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: giri (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular)

• manaḥśilaḥ: Manaḥśila (name of a mountain)
• manaḥśilaḥ: Samānādhikaraṇa (Apposition/समानााधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: manas (प्रातिपदिक) + śilā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular); षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (genitive determinative: ‘mind-stone’)

• mahān: great
• mahān: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mahat (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular); विशेषण

• parvataḥ: mountain
• parvataḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: parvata (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular)

• paścime: in the west
• paścime: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: paścima (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन (Singular); विशेषण

• kṛṣṇaḥ: Kṛṣṇa (name)
• kṛṣṇaḥ: Samānādhikaraṇa (Apposition/समानााधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṛṣṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular)

• nārāyaṇasakhaḥ: friend of Nārāyaṇa
• nārāyaṇasakhaḥ: Samānādhikaraṇa (Apposition/समानााधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nārāyaṇa (प्रातिपदिक) + sakha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular); षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (genitive determinative: ‘friend of Nārāyaṇa’)

• dvijāḥ: O twice-born (Brahmins)
• dvijāḥ: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dvija (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन (Plural); संबोधनार्थे प्रयोगः (used as address)

Speaker

Unspecified narrator (contextual speaker not provided in the single-verse input)

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Geographic Context

Type: mountain

Sandhi Resolution Notes

Sandhi Resolution Notes: gaurastu = gauraḥ + tu; girirmanaḥśilo = giriḥ + manaḥśilaḥ; (pāda-sandhi) kṛṣṇo = kṛṣṇaḥ; nārāyaṇasakho = nārāyaṇasakhaḥ.

Characters & Entities

• Manaḥśilā
• Kṛṣṇa (mountain)
• Nārāyaṇa

FAQs

What does this verse reveal about the geography of sacred Tirthas?

It presents Purāṇic sacred geography by locating named mountains within a dvīpa (cosmic island/continent), indicating an ordered, directional cosmography rather than a purely historical map.

How does this verse emphasize the path of Bhakti?

By describing a mountain as “Nārāyaṇa’s companion,” the verse frames geography in relational-theological terms, subtly centering devotion to Nārāyaṇa as the axis around which places gain sanctity.

What is the ethical lesson from this dialogue?

The verse models reverent transmission of knowledge—addressing “dvijāḥ” and presenting sacred cosmology as a disciplined tradition—encouraging humility and attentiveness in receiving scriptural instruction.