Shloka 18

Śrāddha’s Cosmic Reach and Kāla-Nirṇaya (Sacred Timings): Amāvāsyā, Nakṣatra-Yoga, Tīrtha, and Minimum Offerings

Devanagari script

गङ्गां शतद्रूम् अथ वा विपाशां सरस्वतीं नैमिषगोमतीं वा ततो ऽवगाह्यार्चनम् आदरेण कृत्वा पितॄणां दुरितानि हन्ति

Transliteration

gaṅgāṃ śatadrūm atha vā vipāśāṃ sarasvatīṃ naimiṣagomatīṃ vā tato 'vagāhyārcanam ādareṇa kṛtvā pitṝṇāṃ duritāni hanti

Translation

Whether one approaches the Gaṅgā, the Śatadrū, the Vipāśā, the Sarasvatī, or the Gomati of Naimiṣa—having bathed there and then performed worship with reverent care, one destroys the demerit that clings to the Pitṛs and the ancestral line, restoring their course toward auspicious worlds.

Word by Word

• गङ्गाम्: the Gaṅgā (river)
• गङ्गाम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गङ्गा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• शतद्रूम्: the Śatadrū (Sutlej)
• शतद्रूम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शतद्रू (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• अथ: and/then
• अथ: Sambandha/Modifier (निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अथ (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय/अनन्तर-निपात (and/then)

• वा: or
• वा: Sambandha/Modifier (विकल्प)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: वा (अव्यय)
• Form: विकल्पार्थक-अव्यय (or)

• विपाशाम्: the Vipāśā (Beas)
• विपाशाम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विपाशा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• सरस्वतीम्: the Sarasvatī
• सरस्वतीम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सरस्वती (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• नैमिषगोमतीम्: Naimiṣā and the Gomati
• नैमिषगोमतीम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नैमिष-गोमती (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; नैमिषा च गोमती च (इतरेतर-द्वन्द्वः)

• वा: or
• वा: Sambandha/Modifier (विकल्प)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: वा (अव्यय)
• Form: विकल्पार्थक-अव्यय (or)

• ततः: then/thereupon
• ततः: Sambandha/Modifier (क्रम)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (अव्यय)
• Form: तस्मात्-प्रभव-अव्यय; क्रम/अनन्तरार्थ (thereupon/then)

• अवगाह्य: having bathed (immersed)
• अवगाह्य: Purvakala (Prior action/पूर्वकाल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अव-√गाह् (धातु) + त्वा (क्त्वा) → अवगाह्य
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्यय (gerund), पूर्वकालिक-क्रिया (having bathed/immersed)

• अर्चनम्: worship/adoration
• अर्चनम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अर्चन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• आदरेण: with reverence
• आदरेण: Karana (Manner/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: आदर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• कृत्वा: having done
• कृत्वा: Purvakala (Prior action/पूर्वकाल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: √कृ (धातु) + त्वा (क्त्वा) → कृत्वा
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्यय (gerund), पूर्वकालिक-क्रिया (having done)

• पितॄणाम्: of the ancestors
• पितॄणाम्: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पितृ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• दुरितानि: sins/evils
• दुरितानि: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दुरित (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• हन्ति: destroys/removes
• हन्ति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √हन् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार, परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (teaching Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Tīrtha-snānārcana as a means to remove ancestral demerit and aid Pitṛs

Teaching: Ethical

Quality: compassionate

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Bathing in revered rivers and performing worship with attentive reverence can destroy the ‘durita’ burden affecting one’s ancestral line, redirecting them toward auspicious states.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Undertake pilgrimage or local sacred-water worship with humility; pair ritual purity with ethical living and acts of charity dedicated to ancestors.

Vishishtadvaita: Grace operates through sacred places and acts in Bhagavān’s world; purification is relational and communal (self-and-lineage), consistent with a theistic, embodied Vedānta.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Hari

Bhakti Type: Shanta

Characters & Entities

• Ganga
• Shatadru (Sutlej)
• Vipasha (Beas)
• Sarasvati
• Gomati
• Naimisharanya
• Pitrs (ancestors)

FAQs

What is the significance of sacred river bathing in this Vishnu Purana verse?

The verse presents snāna (ritual bathing) followed by arcana (reverent worship) at major tirthas as a dharmic means of purification, specifically powerful enough to remove ancestral demerit (pitṛ-durita).

How does Sage Parāśara frame the benefit of pilgrimage for ancestors (Pitṛs)?

He links tirtha practice to pitṛ-upakāra: by bathing and worshiping at these rivers, one destroys the burdensome “durita” affecting the ancestral line, implying upliftment and renewed auspiciousness for the Pitṛs.

What is the theological importance of Lord Vishnu in this context?

Even when Vishnu is not named in the verse, the Purana’s logic treats tirthas and their purifying power as operating within Vishnu’s sovereign cosmic order—dharma, sacred geography, and merit function as expressions of the Supreme Reality sustaining the world.