Shloka 15

The Greatness of Gayā

Gayā-Māhātmya

Devanagari script

नदीं सरस्वंतीं सृष्ट्वा स्थितो व्याप्तदिगंतरः । भक्ष्यभोज्यफलादींश्च कामधेनूस्तथासृजत् ॥ १५ ॥

Transliteration

nadīṃ sarasvaṃtīṃ sṛṣṭvā sthito vyāptadigaṃtaraḥ | bhakṣyabhojyaphalādīṃśca kāmadhenūstathāsṛjat || 15 ||

Translation

ಸರಸ್ವತಿ ನದಿಯನ್ನು ಸೃಷ್ಟಿಸಿ ಅವರು ಸರ್ವ ದಿಕ್ಕುಗಳಲ್ಲಿಯೂ ವ್ಯಾಪಿಸಿ ಸ್ಥಿತರಾದರು; ಹಾಗೆಯೇ ಕಾಮಧೇನುಸಮಾನವಾಗಿ ಭಕ್ಷ್ಯ-ಭೋಜ್ಯ, ಫಲಾದಿಗಳನ್ನು ಸಹ ಉಂಟುಮಾಡಿದರು।

Word by Word

• नदीम्: a river
• नदीम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नदी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (Feminine), द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन (Singular)

• सरस्वतीम्: Sarasvatī (river/goddess)
• सरस्वतीम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सरस्वती (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (Feminine), द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन (Singular)

• सृष्ट्वा: having created
• सृष्ट्वा: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: सृज् (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (Absolutive/Gerund), पूर्वकाल (prior action): 'having created'

• स्थितः: stood / remained
• स्थितः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: स्था (धातु)
• Form: कृत-प्रत्यय: क्त (Past passive participle), पुल्लिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular)

• व्याप्त-दिगन्तरः: whose directions were pervaded / all-pervading
• व्याप्त-दिगन्तरः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: व्याप्त (√व्याप् धातु, क्त-कृदन्त) + दिगन्तर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (determinative): 'व्याप्तं दिगन्तरं यस्य' (whose directions/quarters are pervaded); पुल्लिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular)

• भक्ष्य-भोज्य-फल-आदीन्: edibles, foods, fruits, and the like
• भक्ष्य-भोज्य-फल-आदीन्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भक्ष्य (√भक्ष् धातु, यत्-कृदन्त) + भोज्य (√भुज् धातु, यत्-कृदन्त) + फल (प्रातिपदिक) + आदि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: समाहार-द्वन्द्व/इतर-द्वन्द्व (copulative list): 'edibles, foods, fruits, etc.'; पुल्लिङ्ग (Masculine), द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), बहुवचन (Plural)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्यय (conjunction)

• कामधेनूः: wish-fulfilling cows (Kāmadhenus)
• कामधेनूः: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कामधेनु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (Feminine), द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), बहुवचन (Plural)

• तथा: thus / likewise
• तथा: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb): manner 'thus/also'

• असृजत्: created
• असृजत्: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: सृज् (धातु)
• Form: लङ्-लकार (Imperfect/Past), परस्मैपद (Parasmaipada), प्रथम-पुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन (Singular)

Speaker

Narada (narrative voice within the Uttara-Bhaga tirtha context; traditionally framed in dialogue with Sanatkumara in the Narada Purana)

Vrata Kalpa

Vrata: none

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Characters & Entities

• Sarasvati

FAQs

What is the spiritual significance of this verse in Narada Purana?

The verse presents Sarasvatī as a divinely established tīrtha and portrays the cosmic giver as all-pervasive and nourishing—linking sacred geography (river) with sustenance and dharmic prosperity.

How does this verse explain the path of devotion (Bhakti)?

By depicting the divine as both immanent (pervading all directions) and beneficent (granting nourishment like kāmadhenu), it supports bhakti as trusting remembrance of the Lord’s sustaining grace, especially through reverence to tīrthas.

What practical Vedic knowledge (Vedanga) is highlighted here?

Indirectly, it supports tīrtha-based ritual practice: auspicious bathing (snāna), offerings (dāna), and observances timed to sacred places—often coordinated with calendrical reckoning (Jyotiṣa) though no single Vedāṅga is explicitly taught in this verse.