Narada Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 42
The Greatness of the Gaṅgā
Gaṅgāmāhātmya
मकरस्थे रवौ गङ्गा यत्र कुत्रावगाहिता । पुनाति स्नानपानाद्यैर्नयन्तीन्द्रपुरं जगत् ॥ ४२ ॥
makarasthe ravau gaṅgā yatra kutrāvagāhitā | punāti snānapānādyairnayantīndrapuraṃ jagat || 42 ||
Lorsque le Soleil entre en Makara (Capricorne), le Gaṅgā—où que l’on s’y baigne—purifie le monde par des actes tels que le bain et le fait de boire ses eaux, et conduit les êtres vers la demeure céleste d’Indra.
Narada (teaching in a tirtha-mahatmya context)
Vrata: Makara-saṅkrānti snāna (seasonal observance; not named as a vrata in the verse)
Primary Rasa: bhakti
Secondary Rasa: shanta
FAQs
It teaches that bathing in the Gaṅgā during the Sun’s Makara transit is a powerful purifier (pāvanatva), generating punya through simple sacred acts like immersion and sipping her water, with results described as leading toward Svarga.
Though focused on tirtha-ritual, it supports Bhakti by honoring Gaṅgā as a divine purifier and encouraging faith-filled, dharma-aligned practice; such reverent acts are presented as spiritually elevating and merit-producing.
It reflects Jyotiṣa/astral timing: the merit is linked to a specific solar ingress (Surya in Makara), showing the Narada Purana’s use of calendrical-astrological auspiciousness for ritual efficacy.