Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 20
गड्जा महानदी वेणा कावेरी नर्मदा तथा । कुलम्पुना विशल्या च करतोयाम्बुवाहिनी
gaḍjā mahānadī veṇā kāverī narmadā tathā | kulampunā viśalyā ca karatoyāmbuvāhinī ||
ભીષ્મે કહ્યું—“(હું આગળ) ગડ્જા, મહાનદી, વેણા, કાવેરી અને નર્મદા; તેમજ કુલમ્પુના, વિશલ્યા, કરતોયા અને અંબુવાહિની—આ નદીઓનું પણ સ્મરણ કરું છું.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Recollection and reverent naming of sacred rivers (and, by extension, divine powers) is presented as a dharmic act that purifies the mind and invites protection; it models reliance on sanctity, gratitude, and remembrance rather than aggression.
Bhīṣma continues a long protective enumeration (nāma-smaraṇa) by listing additional rivers. The verse is one segment of a broader litany in which holy beings and places are invoked to confer auspiciousness and safeguarding.