Shloka 123

Śiva-nāmānukīrtana-prastāvaḥ

Prologue to the praise of Śiva and the Upamanyu testimony

Devanagari script

आस्थितानां नदीं दिव्यां वालखिल्यैनिषेविताम्‌

Transliteration

āsthitānāṁ nadīṁ divyāṁ vālakhilyai niṣevitām

Translation

Vāsudeva spoke of a celestial river—one approached and resorted to by the steadfast, and frequented by the Vālakhilya sages—evoking a sanctified place upheld by unwavering ascetics and made holy by continual sage-attendance.

Word by Word

• आस्थितानाम्: of those who have resorted to / who are situated at
• आस्थितानाम्: Sambandha
• Type: Adjective
• Root: आस्थित (आ-स्था)
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Genitive, Plural

• नदीम्: river
• नदीम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: नदी
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

• दिव्याम्: divine, celestial
• दिव्याम्: Visheshana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: दिव्य
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

• वालखिल्यैः: by the Vālakhilyas (a class of sages)
• वालखिल्यैः: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: वालखिल्य
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Plural

• निषेविताम्: frequented, resorted to
• निषेविताम्: Visheshana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: निषेवित (नि-सेव्)
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

Speaker

वासुदेव उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vāsudeva (Kṛṣṇa)
• divine river (nadī)
• Vālakhilya sages

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Holiness is reinforced by steadfast practice and the company of the disciplined: a place (or path) becomes 'divine' when it is consistently resorted to by those established in restraint and by venerable sages, suggesting that dharma is sustained through continual, lived commitment.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vāsudeva describes a celestial river characterized by two markers of sanctity—those who have firmly resorted to it and the presence of the Vālakhilya sages who frequent it—setting a sacred scene within the broader discourse of Anuśāsana on dharma and meritorious conduct.