Vamana Purana — Glory of Prithudaka Tirtha, Shloka 1

The Glory of Prithudaka Tirtha and the Akshaya Tithi at Kurukshetra

Devanagari script

देवदेव उवाच एवं पृथूदको देवाः पुण्यः पापभयापहः तं गच्छध्वं महातीर्थं यावत् संनिधिवोधितम्

Transliteration

devadeva uvāca evaṃ pṛthūdako devāḥ puṇyaḥ pāpabhayāpahaḥ taṃ gacchadhvaṃ mahātīrthaṃ yāvat saṃnidhivodhitam

Translation

Der Herr der Götter sprach: „So also, o Götter, ist dieses Pṛthūdaka verdienstvoll und nimmt die aus Sünde entspringende Furcht hinweg. Geht zu jener großen tīrtha, wie es hinsichtlich seiner sannidhi, seiner heiligenden göttlichen Gegenwart in der Nähe, verkündet wurde.“

Word by Word

• देवदेवः: Lord of gods
• देवदेवः: कर्ता (Speaker/उक्तृ)
• Type: Noun
• Root: देव (प्रातिपदिक) + देव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; संबोधनार्थक-शीर्षक (speaker tag)

• उवाच: said
• उवाच: क्रिया (speech act)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वच् (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (Perfect/लिट्), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• एवम्: thus
• एवम्: प्रकार
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एवम् (अव्यय)
• Form: प्रकारवाचक-अव्यय (thus)

• पृथूदकः: Pṛthūdaka
• पृथूदकः: कर्ता (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पृथु (प्रातिपदिक) + उदक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• देवाः: O gods
• देवाः: सम्बोधन (Vocative/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: देव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, संबोधन/प्रथमा, बहुवचन; अत्र संबोधन (vocative)

• पुण्यः: holy
• पुण्यः: विशेषण
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पुण्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; विशेषण (पृथूदकः)

• पापभयापहः: remover of fear of sin
• पापभयापहः: विशेषण
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पाप (प्रातिपदिक) + भय (प्रातिपदिक) + अपह (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; तत्पुरुष (पापभयम् अपहन्ति इति/अपहः)

• तम्: that (place)/him
• तम्: कर्म (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• गच्छध्वम्: go
• गच्छध्वम्: क्रिया (command)
• Type: Verb
• Root: गम् (धातु)
• Form: लोट्-लकार (Imperative/लोट्), मध्यमपुरुष (2nd person), बहुवचन; आत्मनेपद

• महातीर्थम्: the great sacred ford
• महातीर्थम्: कर्म (destination/object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महा (प्रातिपदिक) + तीर्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• यावत्: until/as far as
• यावत्: अवधि (limit)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यावत् (अव्यय)
• Form: परिमाण/अवधि-वाचक-अव्यय (until/as far as)

• संनिधिवोधितम्: made known by (its) presence/proximity
• संनिधिवोधितम्: विशेषण
• Type: Adjective
• Root: संनिधि (प्रातिपदिक) + वोधित (कृदन्त, क्त)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; तत्पुरुष (संनिधिना/संनिधौ वोधितम् = made known by/at proximity) विशेषण (महातीर्थम्)

Speakers

• Devadeva (a supreme divine speaker; often Śiva in Purāṇic usage
• though the epithet can be context-dependent)

Primary Deities

• Devadeva (contextually likely Shiva)
• Devas (audience)

Key Themes

• Tīrtha-māhātmya
• Pāpa-kṣaya (removal of sin)
• Abhaya (fearlessness) through dharma
• Pilgrimage instruction

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

{ "primaryRasa": "shanta", "secondaryRasa": "adbhuta", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }

FAQs

What is the philosophical or ethical takeaway?

Sin is presented not only as ‘fault’ but as a generator of existential fear (bhaya). The tīrtha is praised as pāpa-bhaya-apaha—removing fear by re-aligning the person with sacred order through pilgrimage, remembrance, and ritual conduct.

How does this fit the Pancalakshana?

This is not Vamśa/Vamśānucarita; it belongs to ancillary Purāṇic instruction—tīrtha-māhātmya and dharma-upadeśa. It functions as practical dharma: where to go, and what spiritual result is promised.

What is the symbolic significance?

‘Saṃnidhi’ (divine presence) makes geography sacramental: the place becomes a threshold (tīrtha) where the human and divine are ‘near.’ In the Vāmana Purāṇa’s harmonizing style, such sanctity can be shared across sectarian lines—presence is not restricted to one deity’s domain.