Shloka 17

Adhyaya 56 — The Descent and Fourfold Course of the Ganga; Jambudvipa’s Varshas and Their Conditions

Sanskrit

तत्पावयन्ती संप्राप्ता महाभद्रं सरोवरम् ।

ततश्च शङ्खकूटं सा प्रयाता वै महानदी ॥

Transliteration

tatpāvayantī saṃprāptā mahābhadraṃ sarovaram | tataś ca śaṅkhakūṭaṃ sā prayātā vai mahānadī ||

Translation

ആ പ്രദേശത്തെ ശുദ്ധീകരിച്ചുകൊണ്ട് ആ മഹാനദി മഹാഭദ്ര സരോവരത്തിലെത്തി; അവിടെ നിന്ന് ആ മഹാനദി ശംഖകൂടത്തിലേക്ക് നീങ്ങി।

Word by Word

• tat: that (it)
• tat: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular (एकवचन); demonstrative pronoun used adverbially with participle

• pāvayantī: purifying
• pāvayantī: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pū (धातु) → pāvayantī (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Present active participle (वर्तमानकाले कर्तरि शतृ/शतृ-प्रत्यय), Feminine (स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular (एकवचन); causative stem (णिजन्त) from √pū

• saṃprāptā: having reached / arrived
• saṃprāptā: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sam-√prāp (धातु) → saṃprāptā (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Past passive participle (भूतकर्मणि क्त), Feminine, Nominative, Singular; used predicatively

• mahābhadram: very auspicious / great and auspicious
• mahābhadram: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mahā + bhadra (प्रातिपदिक); compound: mahā-bhadra
• Form: Neuter, Accusative (2nd), Singular; adjective qualifying sarovaram

• sarovaram: lake
• sarovaram: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sarovara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Accusative (2nd), Singular

• tataḥ: then / from there
• tataḥ: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatas (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Indeclinable adverb (अव्यय, क्रियाविशेषण)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Conjunction/particle (समुच्चयबोधक अव्यय)

• śaṅkhakūṭam: Śaṅkhakūṭa (a peak/mountain)
• śaṅkhakūṭam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śaṅkha + kūṭa (प्रातिपदिक); compound: śaṅkha-kūṭa
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग) or Neuter by usage; Accusative (2nd), Singular; place/mountain-name

• sā: she
• sā: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) → sā
• Form: Feminine, Nominative (1st), Singular; pronoun

• prayātā: departed / went forth
• prayātā: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pra-√yā (धातु) → prayātā (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Past passive participle (क्त), Feminine, Nominative, Singular; used predicatively

• vai: indeed
• vai: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vai (अव्यय)
• Form: Emphatic particle (निश्चयार्थक/खल्वर्थक अव्यय)

• mahānadī: the great river
• mahānadī: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā + nadī (प्रातिपदिक); compound: mahā-nadī
• Form: Feminine, Nominative (1st), Singular; apposition to sā (the river)

Speakers

• Purāṇic narrator; continuation of the river itinerary

Verse Rasa

{ "primaryRasa": "shanta", "secondaryRasa": "bhakti", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }

Primary Deities

• Gaṅgā

Key Themes

• Sacred Geography
• Purification motif
• Toponymic cataloguing

FAQs

What is the philosophical or ethical takeaway?

The repeated epithet ‘purifying’ frames nature as a vehicle of sacred merit: contact with sanctified waters is portrayed as cleansing and auspicious, encouraging tīrtha-consciousness.

How does this fit the Pancalakṣaṇa (5 characteristics)?

Bhū-varṇana (description of earthly features) with a tīrtha-valence.

What is the esoteric significance?

The lake-and-mountain sequence can function as a symbolic ladder: stillness (lake) and ascent (mountain) alternating—purification involves both settling and striving.