Shloka 32
गिरीनतीत्य सकलांश्चतुर्द्दिक्षु महांबुधिम् । सा ययौ प्रयता सूता गंगा त्रिपथगामिनी
girīnatītya sakalāṃścaturddikṣu mahāṃbudhim | sā yayau prayatā sūtā gaṃgā tripathagāminī
Crossing beyond all the mountains and moving in the four directions toward the great ocean, the sacred Gaṅgā—pure and intent—flowed on, she who travels the three paths (heaven, earth, and the netherworld).
Suta Goswami
Tattva Level: pasha
Shiva Form: Paśupatinātha
Jyotirlinga: Viśvanātha
Sthala Purana: Gaṅgā as tripathagāminī is central to Kāśī’s Śaiva imagination: the river’s purifying descent and flow sanctify the kṣetra where Viśvanātha grants taraka-jñāna; this verse supports the cosmological status of Gaṅgā as a world-linking tīrtha.
Significance: Bathing/ācamanam in Gaṅgā at Kāśī is held to remove pāpa and support liberation-oriented worship of Viśvanātha; Gaṅgā’s ‘three paths’ underscores her role as a conduit of grace across realms.
Shakti Form: Gaurī
Role: liberating
Cosmic Event: Tripathagāminī motif: Gaṅgā’s threefold course (svarga–martyā–pātāla) as a cosmological connector.
FAQs
It praises Gaṅgā as “tripathagāminī,” a purifier whose flow symbolizes grace moving through all realms—helping bound souls (paśu) loosen bondage (pāśa) and turn toward the Lord (Pati), Śiva.
Gaṅgā is intimately linked with Saguna Śiva (often envisioned on His matted locks). Her sanctifying flow supports tīrtha-bhakti—bathing, offering water, and consecrating worship—commonly associated with Liṅga-pūjā and Śiva’s accessible, compassionate form.
A practical takeaway is tīrtha-snāna (ritual bathing) with remembrance of Śiva, followed by offering Gaṅgā-jala to a Śiva-liṅga while repeating the Pañcākṣarī mantra “Om Namaḥ Śivāya” for inner purification.