Shloka 18

Devanagari script

गङ्गास्नानसहस्रेषु पुष्करस्नानकोटिषु / यत्पापं निलययाति स्मृते नश्यति तद्धरौ

Transliteration

gaṅgāsnānasahasreṣu puṣkarasnānakoṭiṣu / yatpāpaṃ nilayayāti smṛte naśyati taddharau

Translation

Even after a thousand baths in the Gaṅgā and crores of baths at Puṣkara, the sin that would otherwise continue to lodge within a person is destroyed the moment Hari is remembered.

Word by Word

• गङ्गास्नानसहस्रेषु: in thousands of baths in the Gaṅgā
• गङ्गास्नानसहस्रेषु: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गङ्गा + स्नान + सहस्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), बहुवचन — Locative plural; बहुपद-तत्पुरुष (‘in thousands of Gaṅgā-baths’)

• पुष्करस्नानकोटिषु: in crores of baths at Puṣkara
• पुष्करस्नानकोटिषु: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुष्कर + स्नान + कोटि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), बहुवचन — Locative plural; बहुपद-तत्पुरुष (‘in crores of Puṣkara-baths’)

• यत्: which
• यत्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन — Relative pronoun used adjectivally with ‘पापम्’ (‘which’)

• पापम्: sin
• पापम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पाप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन — Neuter singular; here subject of ‘निलययाति’

• निलययाति: settles/abides
• निलययाति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: नि + लय + या (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन — 3rd person singular; ‘goes to a resting-place/abides’

• स्मृते: when (He is) remembered
• स्मृते: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: स्मृ (धातु)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त), सप्तमी (7th), एकवचन — Locative absolute (‘when remembered’)

• नश्यति: perishes
• नश्यति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: नश् (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन — 3rd person singular

• तत्: that
• तत्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन — Demonstrative pronoun used with ‘पापम्’ (‘that’)

• हरौ: in Hari (Viṣṇu)
• हरौ: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: हरि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), एकवचन — Locative singular; ‘in/when (thinking of) Hari’

Speaker

Lord Vishnu (Hari) speaking to Garuda (Vinata-putra)

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Sins that persist even after countless sacred baths are destroyed instantly by remembering Hari.

Vedantic Theme: Primacy of nāma/smṛti-bhakti over external rites; grace-mediated purification; inner transformation as the essence of tīrtha.

Application: Use brief, frequent Hari-smṛti (japa, mental repetition, remembrance at transitions) as a daily purifier, complementing but not replacing ethical conduct.

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Geographic Context

Type: river; tīrtha (sacred lake/region)

Cross References

Related Themes: Garuda Purana 1.230.14-17 (dhyāna/yoga/Vāsudeva as purifier)

Characters & Entities

• Hari (Vishnu)
• Ganga
• Pushkara

FAQs

What is the importance of remembering Hari (Vishnu) in the Garuda Purana?

This verse teaches that Hari-smṛti (remembrance of Vishnu) has immediate purificatory power, destroying sins that may remain even after extensive pilgrimage bathing.

Does the Garuda Purana reject bathing in holy rivers like the Ganga?

No. The verse uses Gaṅgā and Puṣkara baths as the highest examples of ritual purification, while emphasizing that devotion and remembrance of Hari is an even more direct means of destroying sin.

Practical application of this wisdom today?

Along with ethical living and any rituals you follow, cultivate daily Hari-smaraṇa—such as repeating Vishnu’s names, prayer, or mindful remembrance—especially at the start and end of the day.