Varaha Purana 145.100: Adhyaya 145, Shloka 100

The Greatness of the Śālagrāma Sacred Region

Devanagari script

क्षेत्रं प्रमाणं विज्ञेयं गण्डकी सङ्गतं परम् ॥ एवं सा गण्डकी देवि नदीनामुत्तमा नदी ॥

Recitation with translationVaraha Purana 145.100

Transliteration

kṣetraṃ pramāṇaṃ vijñeyaṃ gaṇḍakī saṅgataṃ param | evaṃ sā gaṇḍakī devi nadīnām uttamā nadī ||

Translation

यह पूरा क्षेत्र गंडकी नदी के आस-पास है। देवी, गंडकी सबसे बड़ी नदी मानी जाती है। सारी नदियों में इसका नंबर एक है।

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Word by Word

• kṣetram: field/holy region
• kṣetram: Pradhāna (प्रधाना/Topic)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṣetra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napuṃsakaliṅga, Prathamā/Dvitīyā, Ekavacana; here predicate/topic

• pramāṇam: measure/standard
• pramāṇam: Pradhāna (प्रधाना/Predicate complement)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pramāṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napuṃsakaliṅga, Prathamā/Dvitīyā, Ekavacana; predicate complement

• vijñeyam: to be known/understood
• vijñeyam: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण/Predicative)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vi + jñā (धाातु)
• Form: Kṛtya (gerundive) -ya (विधिलिङ्गार्थ/obligation), Napuṃsakaliṅga, Prathamā/Dvitīyā, Ekavacana; 'to be known'

• gaṇḍakī: Gaṇḍakī (river)
• gaṇḍakī: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gaṇḍakī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana

• saṅgatam: joined/connected
• saṅgatam: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: saṃ + gam (धाातु)
• Form: Bhūta-kṛdanta (past passive participle) of √gam with saṃ-, Napuṃsakaliṅga, Prathamā/Dvitīyā, Ekavacana; used predicatively with kṣetram/pramāṇam (agreement by sense)

• param: supreme, excellent
• param: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: para (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napuṃsakaliṅga, Prathamā/Dvitīyā, Ekavacana; predicate adjective

• evam: thus
• evam: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Adverbial modifier)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: evam (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya (manner adverb)

• sā: she/that (river)
• sā: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Demonstrative pronoun, Strīliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana

• gaṇḍakī: Gaṇḍakī
• gaṇḍakī: Karta (कर्ता/Subject; apposition)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gaṇḍakī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; apposition to sā

• devi: O Goddess
• devi: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन/Address)
• Type: Noun
• Root: devī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Sambodhana, Ekavacana

• nadīnām: of rivers
• nadīnām: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nadī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Ṣaṣṭhī (Genitive/6th), Bahuvacana (Plural)

• uttamā: best
• uttamā: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण/Predicate adjective)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: uttama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana

• nadī: river
• nadī: Karta (कर्ता/Subject; predicate nominal)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nadī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana

Speaker

Varāha

Tags

• Classical Literature
• Purāṇic Studies
• Ancient Geography
• River Heritage

FAQs

What is the historical significance of this verse?

It is a textual marker for the Gaṇḍakī’s prominence in Purāṇic sacred geography, supporting the historical study of river-centered heritage landscapes.

Which geographic location is identified?

The Gaṇḍakī river is explicitly identified; in modern geography it corresponds to the Gandaki river system flowing through Nepal into northern India.

What is the primary ethical instruction?

By elevating the river as central to the kṣetra, the passage supports a place-based ethic: rivers are treated as key cultural resources whose preservation and respectful use are implied.