Shloka 14
भारतवर्षमहात्म्यम् — कर्मभूमित्वम्, नवभेदाः, कुलपर्वताः-नद्यः-जनपदाः, युगचक्रविशेषः, यज्ञपुरुषविष्णुपूजा
ऋषिकुल्याकुमाराद्याः शुक्तिमत्पादसंभवाः आसां नद्युपनद्यश् च सन्त्य् अन्याश् च सहस्रशः
ṛṣikulyākumārādyāḥ śuktimatpādasaṃbhavāḥ āsāṃ nadyupanadyaś ca santy anyāś ca sahasraśaḥ
From the foot of Śuktimat arise rivers such as Ṛṣikulyā and Kumārī; and from them flow forth countless tributaries and lesser streams—indeed, thousands of other currents besides.
Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)
Speaker: Parasara
Topic: Sacred geography of Bhārata-varṣa—its mountains, rivers, and regional divisions
Teaching: Cosmological
Quality: authoritative
Cosmic Hierarchy: Varshas (regions)
Vishnu Form: Narayana (cosmic)
FAQs
The verse anchors Bhārata’s sacred geography by tracing rivers to mountain sources, presenting the land as an ordered, dharma-bearing realm structured within Purāṇic cosmology.
He describes rivers as arising from specific mountains—here, from the ‘foot’ of Śuktimat—and notes that each major river generates many tributaries, emphasizing an interconnected, proliferating hydrological network.
Even when Vishnu is not named, the Purāṇa frames geography and natural order as part of the divinely sustained cosmos—an expression of the Supreme Reality’s governance over creation and its harmonious structure.