Shloka 13
तस्य संस्पर्शनिर्धूतपापपङ्को द्विजोत्तम न याति नरकं मर्त्यो दिव्यं स्नानं हि तत् स्मृतम्
tasya saṃsparśanirdhūtapāpapaṅko dvijottama na yāti narakaṃ martyo divyaṃ snānaṃ hi tat smṛtam
O best of twice-born ones, the mortal whose mire of sin is washed away merely by its touch does not go to hell; for that is remembered in the tradition as a truly divine bath.
Sage Parāśara (teaching Maitreya)
Speaker: Parasara
Topic: The merit (puṇya) and sin-removing power of contact with celestial Gaṅgā-water as ‘divine bath’
Teaching: Ethical
Quality: compassionate
Concept: Contact with sanctified water—conceived as divine—removes sin and averts hell, when approached with reverence and purity of intent.
Vedantic Theme: Dharma
Application: Pair ritual purification (snāna) with ethical reform: repentance, restraint, truthfulness, and remembrance of the divine.
Vishishtadvaita: Grace operates through material means (water) within the Lord’s body-world, supporting a sacramental view of prakṛti.
Bhakti Type: shanta
FAQs
This verse states that a sacred bath is considered “divine” because mere contact with the holy medium is said to cleanse accumulated sin and prevent descent to naraka, highlighting tīrthas as instruments of karmic purification.
Parāśara frames sin as a clinging ‘mire’ (pāpa-paṅka) that can be ‘shaken off’ (nirdhūta) through contact with a consecrated tīrtha, emphasizing ritual purification as a real moral transformation within karmic law.
Even when Vishnu is not named explicitly, the Vishnu Purana treats sacred geography and rites as operating under the sovereignty of the Supreme—tīrthas are efficacious because the cosmic order upheld by Vishnu makes dharma, purification, and karmic results dependable.