Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 48

Avimukta-Māhātmya — Vyāsa in Vārāṇasī and Śiva’s Secret Teaching of Liberation

Devanagari script

वाराणस्यां विशेषेण गङ्गा त्रिपथगामिनी / प्रविष्टा नाशयेत् पापं जन्मान्तरशतैः कृतम्

Transliteration

vārāṇasyāṃ viśeṣeṇa gaṅgā tripathagāminī / praviṣṭā nāśayet pāpaṃ janmāntaraśataiḥ kṛtam

Translation

In Vārāṇasī above all, the Gaṅgā—who flows through the three realms—when one enters her waters, destroys sins amassed across hundreds of births.

Word by Word

• वाराणस्याम्: in Vārāṇasī
• वाराणस्याम्: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वाराणसी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन

• विशेषेण: especially
• विशेषेण: Kriyā-viśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: विशेष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन; क्रियाविशेषण-प्रयोग (adverbial instrumental: ‘especially’)

• गङ्गा: Gaṅgā
• गङ्गा: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गङ्गा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• त्रि-पथ-गामिनी: going in three paths (heaven/earth/netherworld)
• त्रि-पथ-गामिनी: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: त्रि (प्रातिपदिक) + पथ (प्रातिपदिक) + गामिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; उपपद-तत्पुरुषः (त्रीणि पथानि गच्छती)

• प्रविष्टा: having entered
• प्रविष्टा: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: प्र-विश् (धातु)
• Form: कृदन्त (क्त-प्रत्ययान्त), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; ‘प्रविष्टा (अत्र आगता/प्रवेशं कृता)’

• नाशयेत्: would destroy
• नाशयेत्: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: नश्/नाशय् (धातु; णिच्)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; णिच्-प्रयोग (causative: ‘cause to perish/destroy’)

• पापम्: sin
• पापम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पाप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• जन्म-अन्तर-शतैः: by hundreds of other births
• जन्म-अन्तर-शतैः: Karaṇa (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: जन्मन् (प्रातिपदिक) + अन्तर (प्रातिपदिक) + शत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया, बहुवचन; तत्पुरुष-समासः (जन्मान्तराणां शतानि = hundreds of other births)

• कृतम्: committed
• कृतम्: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: कृ (धातु)
• Form: कृदन्त (क्त-प्रत्ययान्त), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; ‘पापम्’ इत्यस्य विशेषणम् (done/committed)

Speaker

Traditional Purana narrator (Sūta/Vyāsa-style narration) praising a tīrtha; framed within Kurma Purana discourse

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Characters & Entities

• Varanasi (Kashi)
• Ganga (Tripathaga)

More Details (4 sections)

FAQs

How does this verse explain the nature of the Supreme Self (Atman)?

It does not define Ātman directly; it teaches that sacred geography (Gaṅgā in Kāśī) supports purification of pāpa, which in turn aids clarity for realizing the Self taught elsewhere in the Kurma Purana.

What Yoga or Meditative practices are highlighted here?

The verse highlights tīrtha-sevā through immersion in the Gaṅgā as a purificatory discipline; in Kurma Purana’s broader soteriology, such external purification is meant to complement inner yoga (self-restraint, japa, and contemplation).

How does this verse depict the relationship between Shiva and Vishnu?

Indirectly: by praising Kāśī and Gaṅgā—central to Śaiva sacred space—within a Vaiṣṇava Purāṇa, it reflects the Kurma Purana’s integrative Shaiva-Vaishnava approach where dharma and liberation are supported through shared tīrthas.