Narada Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 12
The Greatness of the Gaṅgā
Gaṅgāmāhātmya
गङ्गा गङ्गेति यो ब्रूयाद्योजनानां शते स्थितः । सोऽपि मुच्येत पापेभ्यः किमु गङ्गाभिषेकवान् ॥ १२ ॥
gaṅgā gaṅgeti yo brūyādyojanānāṃ śate sthitaḥ | so'pi mucyeta pāpebhyaḥ kimu gaṅgābhiṣekavān || 12 ||
നൂറു യോജന ദൂരെയിരുന്നാലും ‘ഗംഗാ, ഗംഗാ’ എന്നു ഉച്ചരിക്കുന്നവൻ പോലും പാപങ്ങളിൽ നിന്ന് മോചിതനാകുന്നു; പിന്നെ ഗംഗാജലാഭിഷേകം ലഭിച്ചവന്റെ മഹിമ എത്രയോ അധികം!
Narada (within the Narada–Sanatkumara dialogue context)
Vrata: none
Primary Rasa: bhakti
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
FAQs
It teaches the extraordinary purifying power (pāpa-kṣaya) of Gaṅgā: even remembrance and utterance of her name from afar grants release from sin, while actual contact through bathing is presented as even more potent.
By valuing sincere nāma-smaraṇa (name-remembrance) as spiritually effective, it aligns purification with devotional orientation—faithful utterance of a sacred name is itself a bhakti-act that draws grace and merit.
It reflects kalpa-style ritual pragmatics: tirtha-snāna (holy bathing) and japa/uccāraṇa (repetitive sacred utterance) as applied means for śuddhi (purification) and pāpa-nivṛtti (cessation of sin).