Adhyaya 173: Account of Gokarṇa’s Śuka-Satra, Temple Consecration, and the Resulting Merit
Gokarṇa-śuka-satra-pratiṣṭhā-phala-kathana
Ritual-Manual (Tīrtha-Māhātmya and Dāna-Śrāddha Praxis)
Varāha tells Pṛthivī of the aftermath of Gokarṇa’s auspicious settlement: he honors Śuka, his parents, and a virtuous household, and arranges communal worship and festivities in Mathurā. The account stresses orderly hospitality (satkāra), public religious patronage, and the performance of a great, obstacle-free rite, together with regular gifts of food to Brāhmaṇas. Gokarṇa establishes a major Śiva shrine named for Śuka—Śukeśvara—and conducts a grand satra-feast for Brāhmaṇas, famed as the “Śuka-satra.” These deeds are presented as bringing tangible social welfare and posthumous ascent for Śuka (and also for a Śabara with his wife), linking tīrtha-bathing, śrāddha, gifts of gold and cows, and communal ritual to enduring dharmic continuity and liberation.
Primary Speakers
Key Concepts
Shlokas in Adhyaya 173
Verse 1
श्रीवराह उवाच ॥ तत्र स्थित्वा यथान्यायं गोकरणः सर्वमङ्गलम् ॥ शुकं च मातापितरौ साधुभार्याचतुष्टयम्
Śrī Varāha said: Having stayed there in a manner befitting propriety, Gokarṇa—an embodiment of all auspiciousness—honoured Śuka, his mother and father, and the group of four virtuous wives.
Verse 2
सम्मान्य पूजयामास यथाविभवशक्तितः ॥ मथुरावासिभिर्लोकैरुद्यानं कारयंस्तदा
He showed honour and offered worship according to his means; and at that time, with the people dwelling in Mathurā, he had a garden laid out.
Verse 3
स्वयं च कृतवांस्तत्र अविघ्नस्य महामखम् ॥ भक्ष्यभोज्ये ब्राह्मणेभ्यो ददौ दानानि नित्यशः
And he himself performed there a great sacrifice (yajña) intended for freedom from obstacles; and to the brāhmaṇas he regularly gave gifts of foods and prepared meals.
Verse 4
गीतवादित्रमाङ्गल्यं पुत्रवृद्धौ यथोचितम् ॥ तत्सर्वं कृतवाँल्लोको गोकरणस्य महात्मनः
Songs, instrumental music, and auspicious festivities—appropriate for the increase of sons and prosperity—were all carried out by the people for the great-souled Gokarṇa.
Verse 5
एकैकं च परिष्वज्य प्रणिपत्य यथाक्रमम् ॥ मातापित्रोः प्रणम्याथ शिरसा पादपङ्कजे
Embracing each one in turn and bowing in proper order, he then paid reverence to his mother and father, placing his head upon their lotus-like feet.
Verse 6
शुकं हृदि समालोक्य प्ररुरोद स वै वणिक् ॥ यस्य प्रसादाज्जीवश्च धर्मश्चानुत्तमा गतिः
Beholding Śuka within his heart, that merchant wept; by whose favour there are life, dharma, and the unsurpassed destination.
Verse 7
विशिष्टेन मया प्राप्तो राज्ञो लाभः सुपुष्कलः ॥ शुक पुत्रान्मया प्राप्तमिह लोके परत्र च
Through your distinction I obtained from the king a very abundant gain; and, O Śuka, through sons I have obtained fulfilment both in this world and in the other.
Verse 8
एवं वसन्सुखं तत्र गोकरणः सह बन्धुभिः ॥ शुक नाम्ना कृतं तेन शिवस्यायतनं महत्
Thus dwelling there happily with his kinsmen, Gokarṇa caused a great shrine of Śiva to be made, bearing Śuka’s name.
Verse 9
शुकेश्वरं प्रतिष्ठाप्य दिव्यं सत्रं चकार ह ॥ ब्राह्मणानां शते द्वे च मिष्टान्नवरभोजने
Having installed Śukeśvara, he performed a splendid satra; and for two hundred brāhmaṇas there was an excellent feast with sweet food.
Verse 10
शुकप्रदाने गोकर्णः फलं स्नानस्य सङ्गमात्॥ श्राद्धं सुवर्णैर्गोदानं कृत्वा तस्मै ददौ च सः॥
By the gift of the parrot (śuka), Gokarṇa obtained the merit-fruit of bathing at the sacred confluence. Having performed the śrāddha with gold and having made the gift of a cow, he indeed bestowed it upon him.
Verse 11
शबराय सभार्याय तेन स्वर्गं गतश्च ह॥ शुकोदरेण सहितो विमानवरमास्थितः॥
Through that act he went to heaven together with the Śabara and his wife. Accompanied by Śuka-udara, he mounted an excellent celestial chariot.
Verse 12
एतत्ते कथितं सर्वं मथुरायां महत्फलम्॥ सरस्वतीसङ्गमस्य गोकर्णस्य शिवस्य च॥
All this has been related to you—the great result connected with Mathurā: that of the Sarasvatī confluence, that of Gokarṇa, and also that of Śiva.
Verse 13
गोकर्णस्य तु सन्तानमक्षयं धर्मतोऽव्ययम्॥ सम्भूतं स सुखं भुक्त्वा ततो मोक्षमवाप्नुयात्॥
For Gokarṇa there arose a lineage—imperishable and, by dharma, unspent and undiminishing. Having enjoyed happiness, he would thereafter attain liberation (mokṣa).
Verse 14
शुकसत्रमिति ख्यातं मृत्तो मुक्तिमवाप सः॥ विमानवरमारुह्य स्वर्गलोकं गतः शुकः॥
It became known as the “Śuka-satra”; upon dying, he attained liberation. Mounting an excellent celestial chariot, Śuka went to the world of heaven.
Frequently Asked Questions
The chapter models dharma as socially embedded practice: orderly honoring of parents and guests, sustained charitable giving (especially food-gifts), and public religious patronage are presented as producing communal well-being and stable moral continuity, with liberation/ascension framed as narrative consequences.
No explicit tithi, lunar month, or seasonal marker is stated in the provided verses. The practices are described as ongoing (e.g., nityaśaḥ dāna to Brahmins) and occasion-based (satra, śrāddha) without calendrical specification here.
Environmental ethics appear indirectly through the sacralization of place: the Sarasvatī-saṅgama and Mathurā are treated as landscapes where bathing, ritual order, and collective restraint confer ‘mahat-phala.’ This frames river confluences as protected ecological-cultural zones whose integrity is maintained through regulated, communal religious use rather than exploitative activity.
The narrative references Gokarṇa (central agent), Śuka (recipient and eponym of the satra and shrine), Śiva (as the deity of the installed āyatana/Śukeśvara), a rājā (king) mentioned as a source of material gain, and a Śabara with his wife as beneficiaries of the ritual economy; no explicit dynastic genealogy is provided in these verses.