Shloka 53

Puruṣottama-kṣetra Māhātmya: Śveta-Mādhava & Matsya-Mādhava; Mārkaṇḍeya-tīrtha Mārjana and Bath Liturgy

Devanagari script

प्रधानः सर्वभूतानां जीवानां प्रभुख्ययः । अमृतस्यारणिस्त्वं हि देवयोनिरपांपते ॥ ५३ ॥

Transliteration

pradhānaḥ sarvabhūtānāṃ jīvānāṃ prabhukhyayaḥ | amṛtasyāraṇistvaṃ hi devayonirapāṃpate || 53 ||

Translation

You are the foremost among all beings, renowned as the lord of living creatures. Indeed, O Lord of the waters, you are the churning-stick that brings forth immortality (amṛta), the very source from which the gods arise.

Word by Word

• प्रधानः: the chief/primary one
• प्रधानः: कर्तृ-समानााधिकरण (Predicate)
• Type: Noun
• Root: प्रधान (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विधेय (chief/primary)

• सर्वभूतानाम्: of all beings
• सर्वभूतानाम्: षष्ठी-सम्बन्ध (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सर्व (प्रातिपदिक) + भूत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; कर्मधारयः: सर्वाणि भूतानि

• जीवानाम्: of living beings
• जीवानाम्: षष्ठी-सम्बन्ध (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: जीव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• प्रभुख्ययः: renowned as the lord
• प्रभुख्ययः: कर्तृ-समानााधिकरण (Predicate epithet)
• Type: Noun
• Root: प्रभु (प्रातिपदिक) + ख्य (धातु √ख्या/प्रातिपदिक-ख्य)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः: प्रभुत्वेन ख्यातः/प्रभु-ख्य (renowned as lord)

• अमृतस्य: of nectar/immortality
• अमृतस्य: षष्ठी-सम्बन्ध (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अमृत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• अरणिः: the fire-stick (source)
• अरणिः: कर्तृ-समानााधिकरण (Predicate)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अरणि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विधेय (fire-stick; source)

• त्वम्: you
• त्वम्: कर्ता (Kartā/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: त्वद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• हि: indeed
• हि: सम्बन्ध/वाक्य-सम्बन्ध (Emphasis)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: हि (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निपात (particle: indeed/for)

• देवयोनिः: source of the gods
• देवयोनिः: कर्तृ-समानााधिकरण (Predicate epithet)
• Type: Noun
• Root: देव (प्रातिपदिक) + योनि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः: देवानां योनि: (source/origin of gods)

• अपाम्: of waters
• अपाम्: षष्ठी-सम्बन्ध (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अप्/आप् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; (of waters)

• पते: O lord
• पते: सम्बोधन (Sambodhana)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन-प्रथमा (Vocative), एकवचन

Speaker

Narada (within a stuti/praise passage in the Uttara-Bhaga tirtha-mahatmya narrative)

Vrata Kalpa

Vrata: none

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: bhakti

Secondary Rasa: adbhuta

Characters & Entities

• Apampati (Lord of the Waters)
• Amrita
• Devas

FAQs

What is the spiritual significance of this verse in Narada Purana?

It exalts the divine principle presiding over sacred waters as the chief sustainer of life and as the catalytic means (araṇi) through which amṛta—symbolizing liberation and divine grace—manifests.

How does this verse explain the path of devotion (Bhakti)?

By using devotional praise (stuti) that attributes cosmic lordship and salvific power to the deity of waters, it models bhakti as reverent remembrance and glorification, especially in a tirtha-mahatmya setting.

What practical Vedic knowledge (Vedanga) is highlighted here?

The verse mainly functions as stuti rather than a Vedanga lesson; practically, it supports ritual understanding (kalpa-oriented usage) of sacred waters in tīrtha practices—purification, offerings, and vows performed at water-sites.