Shloka 26

Tīrtha-Māhātmya: Catalog of Sacred Places and the Supreme Inner Tīrtha

Devanagari script

सर्वं ब्रह्मेतियो ऽवेति नातीर्थं तस्य किञ्चन / एतेषु स्नानदानानि श्राद्धं पिण्डमथाक्षयम्

Transliteration

sarvaṃ brahmetiyo 'veti nātīrthaṃ tasya kiñcana / eteṣu snānadānāni śrāddhaṃ piṇḍamathākṣayam

Translation

യഥാർത്ഥത്തിൽ “സർവ്വവും ബ്രഹ്മം” എന്നു തത്ത്വമായി അറിയുന്നവന് വേറെയൊരു തീർത്ഥാന്വേഷണം വേണ്ട. ആ ബോധത്തിൽ സ്നാനം, ദാനം, ശ്രാദ്ധം, പിണ്ഡാർപ്പണം എന്നിവ എല്ലാം അക്ഷയ പുണ്യഫലദായകമാകുന്നു.

Word by Word

• सर्वम्: all; everything
• सर्वम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सर्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; सर्वनाम-शब्द (pronoun/adjectival stem)

• ब्रह्म: Brahman; the Absolute
• ब्रह्म: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्रह्मन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन

• इति: thus; as
• इति: Sambandha (Relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इति (अव्यय)
• Form: उद्धरण-निपात (quotative particle)

• यः: who
• यः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; सम्बन्धक-सर्वनाम (relative pronoun)

• वेत्ति: knows
• वेत्ति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: विद् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

• न: not
• न: Sambandha (Relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेध-निपात (negation particle)

• अतीर्थम्: (any) non-pilgrimage place; anything that is not a tīrtha
• अतीर्थम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तीर्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; अ-उपसर्गेण निषेधार्थक-समासवत् प्रयोगः (a-tīrtha = non-tīrtha)

• तस्य: for him; of him
• तस्य: Sambandha (Relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6), एकवचन

• किञ्चन: anything; whatsoever
• किञ्चन: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: किञ्चन (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; अनिश्चित-सर्वनाम (indefinite pronoun)

• एतेषु: in/among these
• एतेषु: Adhikarana (Locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: एतद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7), बहुवचन

• स्नानदानानि: baths and gifts (acts of bathing and giving)
• स्नानदानानि: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्नान + दान (प्रातिपदिके)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), बहुवचन; इतरेतर-द्वन्द्व (snāna + dāna)

• श्राद्धम्: śrāddha rite (ancestral offering)
• श्राद्धम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: श्राद्ध (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन

• पिण्डम्: piṇḍa (rice-ball offering)
• पिण्डम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पिण्ड (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन

• अथ: and then; also
• अथ: Sambandha (Relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अथ (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय/अनन्तर-निपात (conjunctive/sequential particle)

• अक्षयम्: imperishable; inexhaustible
• अक्षयम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अक्षय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; विशेषण (qualifier)

Speaker

Lord Vishnu (in dialogue with Garuda/Vinata-putra)

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Sarvaṃ brahma—nondual realization renders the search for separate tīrthas unnecessary; all acts (snāna, dāna, śrāddha, piṇḍa) become akṣaya when grounded in right knowledge.

Vedantic Theme: Brahman alone is real; sacredness is not spatially limited; karma becomes purified/consummated by jñāna (jñāna-dīpta-karma).

Application: Cultivate brahma-bhāvanā in daily life; perform rites with nondual awareness and without tīrtha-attachment, seeing all places and beings as Brahman.

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: adbhuta

Cross References

Related Themes: Garuda Purana 1.81 (tīrtha-māhātmya context; akṣaya-phala statements)

Characters & Entities

• Brahman
• Tirtha
• Shraddha
• Pinda

FAQs

What is the importance of realizing “All is Brahman” in the Garuda Purana?

This verse says such realization makes external pilgrimage secondary, because the sacredness (tīrtha) is fulfilled in inner knowledge, and one’s righteous acts gain imperishable merit.

How does this verse relate to śrāddha and piṇḍa offerings?

It affirms that śrāddha and piṇḍa—key Garuda Purana death-rite duties—become akṣaya (unfailing in fruit) when done from the standpoint of true spiritual understanding rather than mere formality.

Practical application of this wisdom today?

Perform charity and ancestral rites with sincerity and a higher spiritual aim, while cultivating the understanding of the Divine as all-pervading—so practice becomes deeper than location-based ritual alone.