Shloka 59
The Procedure for Offering Piṇḍa (Funerary Rice-balls) — Gayā-māhātmya
आगतोऽस्मि गयां देव पितृकार्ये गदाधर । त्वमेव साक्षी भगवाननृणोऽहमृणत्रयात् ॥ ५९ ॥
āgato'smi gayāṃ deva pitṛkārye gadādhara | tvameva sākṣī bhagavānanṛṇo'hamṛṇatrayāt || 59 ||
હે દેવ ગદાધર! પિતૃકાર્ય માટે હું ગયા ધામે આવ્યો છું. હે ભગવાન, તમે જ સાક્ષી છો; તમારી કૃપાથી હું ઋણત્રયથી અનૃણ થાઉં છું.
Pilgrim/ritual performer addressing Lord Vishnu (Gadadhara) at Gaya (within the Gaya Mahatmya narration)
Vrata: none
Primary Rasa: bhakti
Secondary Rasa: shanta
FAQs
The verse frames Gayā as a sacred tirtha where ancestral rites are performed in the presence of Viṣṇu (Gadādhara) as the divine witness, and it links proper pitṛ-kārya with becoming free from the foundational obligations known as ṛṇa-traya.
Even while performing ritual duty, the speaker directly surrenders to Gadādhara and acknowledges Him as the sole sākṣī; this devotional orientation makes the rite God-centered, presenting bhakti as the inner power that sanctifies karma and leads toward liberation from bondage.
It points to Kalpa (ritual procedure) through pitṛ-kārya such as śrāddha and piṇḍa-dāna, and to Dharma-śāstra principles of ṛṇa-traya—showing how prescribed rites at a tirtha are undertaken to discharge inherited obligations.