Narada Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 12

The Outline (Anukramaṇī) of the Vāyavīya (Vāyu) Purāṇa

Devanagari script

ॐकारेश्वरमारभ्ययावत्पश्चिमसागरः । संगमाः पंच च त्रिंशन्नदीनां पापनाशनी ॥ १२ ॥

Transliteration

oṃkāreśvaramārabhyayāvatpaścimasāgaraḥ | saṃgamāḥ paṃca ca triṃśannadīnāṃ pāpanāśanī || 12 ||

Translation

ഓംകാരേശ്വരത്തിൽ നിന്ന് പടിഞ്ഞാറൻ സമുദ്രം വരെ നദികളുടെ മുപ്പത്തഞ്ച് സംഗമങ്ങളുണ്ട്—അവ പാപനാശിനികൾ.

Word by Word

• oṃkāreśvaram: Oṃkāreśvara
• oṃkāreśvaram: Apādāna (अपादान/Starting-point)
• Type: Noun
• Root: oṃkāra + īśvara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Accusative (2/द्वितीया), Singular (एकवचन); proper name; tatpuruṣa: oṃkārasya īśvaraḥ (ॐकारस्य ईश्वरः)

• ārabhya: starting from
• ārabhya: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ā√rabh (धातु) + ya (क्त्वा/ल्यप्)
• Form: Gerund/absolutive (ल्यप्), indeclinable (अव्यय); 'beginning from'

• yāvat: up to
• yāvat: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Limit)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yāvat (अव्यय)
• Form: Indeclinable (अव्यय); correlating adverb meaning 'up to/as far as'

• paścima-sāgaraḥ: the western ocean
• paścima-sāgaraḥ: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण/Endpoint-Location)
• Type: Noun
• Root: paścima + sāgara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (1/प्रथमा), Singular (एकवचन); karmadhāraya: paścimaḥ sāgaraḥ (पश्चिमः सागरः)

• saṃgamāḥ: confluences
• saṃgamāḥ: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: saṃgama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (1/प्रथमा), Plural (बहुवचन)

• pañca: five
• pañca: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण/Number)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pañca (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Numeral (संख्या), indeclinable-like; used as adjective to 'saṃgamāḥ'

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Indeclinable (अव्यय); conjunction (समुच्चयबोधक)

• triṃśat: thirty
• triṃśat: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण/Number)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: triṃśat (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Numeral (संख्या); used as adjective to 'saṃgamāḥ' (understood: triṃśat-saṃgamāḥ)

• nadīnām: of rivers
• nadīnām: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Possessor)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nadī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine (स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Genitive (6/षष्ठी), Plural (बहुवचन)

• pāpa-nāśanī: destroyer of sins
• pāpa-nāśanī: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pāpa + nāśanī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine (स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Nominative (1/प्रथमा), Singular (एकवचन); adjective (collective/description) of the set of confluences; tatpuruṣa: pāpasya nāśanī (पापस्य नाशिनी)

Speaker

Narada

Vrata Kalpa

Vrata: none

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: adbhuta

Characters & Entities

• Omkāreśvara
• Western Ocean

FAQs

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

It elevates river confluences (saṅgamas) as powerful tīrthas, stating that a series of thirty-five such meeting-points—spanning from Oṃkāreśvara to the Western Ocean—are inherently purifying and destroy sin (pāpa-nāśanī).

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

While the verse is primarily a tīrtha-mahātmya statement, it supports bhakti in practice: sacred travel, reverent bathing, and remembrance of holy places become devotional acts that purify the heart and prepare one for steadier worship.

What practical Vedic knowledge (Vedanga) is highlighted here?

Kalpa (ritual practice) is implied: the verse points to tīrtha-snāna at saṅgamas as a dharmic purification rite, guiding where such observances are especially efficacious.