Shloka 14

Kurukṣetra–Sarasvatī Tīrtha-Māhātmya

Pilgrimage Merits and Sacred Geography

Devanagari script

शुभे देशे तथा राजन पुण्ये देवर्षिसेविते । गड्ाद्वारे महाभाग देवगन्धर्वसेविते,महाभाग! पहलेकी बात है, देवताओं और गन्धर्वोसे सेवित गंगाद्वार (हरिद्वार)-तीर्थमें भागीरथीके पवित्र, शुभ एवं देवर्षिसेवित तट-प्रदेशमें श्रेष्ठ धर्मात्मा भीष्मजी पितृसम्बन्धी (श्राद्ध, तर्पण आदि) व्रतका आश्रय ले महर्षियोंके साथ रहते थे

Transliteration

śubhe deśe tathā rājan puṇye devarṣi-sevite | gaṅgādvāre mahābhāga deva-gandharva-sevite ||

Translation

Nārada said: “O king, in a fair and holy region—at Gaṅgādvāra, frequented by divine seers and attended by gods and Gandharvas—there once lived the noble Bhīṣma. Dwelling on the pure, auspicious banks of the Bhāgīrathī in the company of great ṛṣis, he had undertaken observances connected with the ancestors (such as śrāddha and libations), grounding his conduct in dharma.”

Word by Word

• {'śubha': 'auspicious, благоприятный', 'deśa': 'place, region', 'rājan': 'O king (vocative)', 'puṇya': 'holy, meritorious, sacred', 'devarṣi': 'divine seer (e.g., Nārada and other celestial ṛṣis)', 'sevita': 'frequented, attended, served by', 'gaṅgādvāra': '‘Gate of the Gaṅgā’ (Haridwar), a sacred tīrtha', 'mahābhāga': 'highly fortunate/noble one (honorific address)', 'deva': 'god, deity', 'gandharva': 'celestial musician

• a class of divine beings', 'Bhāgīrathī': 'name of the Gaṅgā associated with King Bhagīratha

• the river Gaṅgā in its upper course', 'pitr̥-sambandhī': 'connected with the ancestors (pitṛs)', 'vrata': 'vow, religious observance', 'śrāddha': 'ancestral rite/offerings for pitṛs', 'tarpaṇa': 'libation/oblations of water to deities/ṛṣis/pitṛs'}

Speaker

नारद उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Nārada
• King (rājan)
• Gaṅgādvāra (Haridwar)
• Gaṅgā / Bhāgīrathī
• Devarṣis
• Devas
• Gandharvas
• Bhīṣma
• Pitṛs (ancestors)
• Ṛṣis (sages)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights dharmic life anchored in sacred geography and disciplined observance: holy places (tīrthas) and the company of sages support ethical conduct, and honoring one’s ancestors through śrāddha/tarpaṇa is presented as a legitimate, meritorious duty within dharma.

What is happening in the narrative?

Nārada begins a recollection: he describes a past scene at Gaṅgādvāra on the Bhāgīrathī where Bhīṣma, living among ṛṣis, undertakes ancestral observances. The setting—visited by gods, Gandharvas, and divine seers—frames Bhīṣma’s conduct as exemplary and ritually grounded.