Vamana Purana — Bali's Sudarshana Worship, Shloka 63

Bali’s Worship of Sudarshana and Prahlada’s Teaching on Vishnu-Bhakti

Devanagari script

पृथिव्यां यानि तीर्थानि पुण्यान्यायतनानि च तानि सर्वाण्यवाप्नोति विष्णोर्नामानुकीर्तनात्

Transliteration

pṛthivyāṃ yāni tīrthāni puṇyānyāyatanāni ca tāni sarvāṇyavāpnoti viṣṇornāmānukīrtanāt

Translation

By the repeated recitation (kīrtana) of Viṣṇu’s names, one attains the full merit of all the sacred fords (tīrthas) and all holy abodes (puṇya-āyatanas) that exist upon the earth.

Speakers

• Unspecified in the provided excerpt (within Adhyāya 67’s didactic discourse)

Primary Deities

• Vishnu

Key Themes

• Nāma-mahātmya (power of divine names)
• Tīrtha-phala equivalence through bhakti
• Accessibility of merit beyond physical pilgrimage
• Bhakti as a universal purifier

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

{ "primaryRasa": "shanta", "secondaryRasa": "adbhuta", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }

FAQs

Does this verse deny the value of physical tīrtha-yātrā (pilgrimage)?

It does not negate pilgrimage; it asserts an equivalence of merit: sincere nāma-kīrtana can confer the same tīrtha-phala that would otherwise require extensive travel. This is a common Purāṇic strategy to universalize access to dharma when pilgrimage is difficult.

What is meant by ‘puṇya-āyatana’ here?

Āyatana literally means a ‘seat’ or ‘abode’; in Purāṇic usage it can include temples, sanctified groves, hermitages, and other consecrated loci of merit. The verse groups these with tīrthas to cover both ‘crossing-places’ (rivers/ghāṭas) and ‘holy seats’ (shrines).

Why is nāma-kīrtana treated as geographically comprehensive?

Because the divine name is presented as a portable, ever-available locus of sanctity. The merit associated with many places is ‘collected’ into a single practice, making sacred geography spiritually accessible without physically traversing it.