Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 33
तस्यानंदस्य नौपम्यं स्वर्गादीनां भवेत्क्वचित् । गंगोदकस्येव मानं केवलं सोऽप्यसावपि
tasyānaṃdasya naupamyaṃ svargādīnāṃ bhavetkvacit | gaṃgodakasyeva mānaṃ kevalaṃ so'pyasāvapi
Kebahagiaan itu tak memiliki perbandingan sejati dengan surga dan sejenisnya. ‘Ukurannya’ hanya diketahui oleh dirinya sendiri—sebagaimana ukuran sejati air Gaṅgā dipahami hanya oleh air Gaṅgā itu sendiri.
Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) narrating to the sages (deduced)
Tirtha: Gaṅgā (invoked metaphorically)
Type: river
Listener: Pārtha (Arjuna)
Scene: A contemplative comparison: a vessel of Gaṅgā-water shimmering; beside it, symbolic ‘heavenly’ pleasures fading; the central motif is an inner radiance indicating bliss beyond comparison.
FAQs
The highest spiritual joy is self-validating and incomparable; it surpasses even celestial pleasures described in Purāṇic cosmology.
The verse uses Gaṅgā-water as a benchmark metaphor while continuing to praise the gupta-kṣetra’s transformative potency.
No new prescription; it interprets the fruit (phala) of the prior japa and the site’s prabhāva.