Shloka 49

The Greatness of Bathing in the Ganges

Gaṅgā-snānā-mahātmya

Devanagari script

इति श्रीबृहन्नारदीयपुराणोत्तरभागे मोहिनीचरिते गंगास्नानमाहात्म्यं नामैकोनचत्वारिंशोऽध्यायः ॥ ३९ ॥

Transliteration

iti śrībṛhannāradīyapurāṇottarabhāge mohinīcarite gaṃgāsnānamāhātmyaṃ nāmaikonacatvāriṃśo'dhyāyaḥ || 39 ||

Translation

ഇങ്ങനെ ശ്രീ ബൃഹന്നാരദീയ പുരാണത്തിന്റെ ഉത്തരഭാഗത്തിലെ മോഹിനീചരിതത്തിൽ ‘ഗംഗാസ്നാനമാഹാത്മ്യം’ എന്ന പേരിലുള്ള മുപ്പത്തൊമ്പതാം അധ്യായം സമാപ്തമായി।

Word by Word

• इति: thus
• इति: Vakyopapadana (वाक्योपपादन)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इति (अव्यय)
• Form: समाप्ति/उद्धरण-सूचक अव्यय (thus/end marker)

• श्री-बृहन्-नारदीय-पुराण-उत्तर-भागे: in the Uttara section of the Śrī Bṛhan-Nāradīya Purāṇa
• श्री-बृहन्-नारदीय-पुराण-उत्तर-भागे: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: श्री (प्रातिपदिक) + बृहन् (प्रातिपदिक) + नारदीय (प्रातिपदिक) + पुराण (प्रातिपदिक) + उत्तर (प्रातिपदिक) + भाग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन; समासः बहुपद-तत्पुरुषः (ग्रन्थ-स्थाननिर्देशः: ‘in the Uttara-bhāga of the Śrī Bṛhan-Nāradīya Purāṇa’)

• मोहिनी-चरिते: in the Mohinī narrative
• मोहिनी-चरिते: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मोहिनी (प्रातिपदिक) + चरित (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन; समासः षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (मोहिन्याः चरितम्)

• गङ्गा-स्नान-माहात्म्यम्: the greatness of bathing in the Gaṅgā
• गङ्गा-स्नान-माहात्म्यम्: Vishaya (विषय/Title)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गङ्गा (प्रातिपदिक) + स्नान (प्रातिपदिक) + माहात्म्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; शीर्षक-रूपे (as a title); समासः षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (गङ्गायाः स्नानस्य माहात्म्यम्)

• नाम: named
• नाम: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/marker)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: नाम (अव्यय/निपात)
• Form: नाम-निपातः (particle meaning ‘named/called’)

• एकोन-चत्वारिंशः: thirty-ninth
• एकोन-चत्वारिंशः: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: एकोन (प्रातिपदिक) + चत्वारिंशत् (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; संख्यावाचक-विशेषण; समासः तत्पुरुषः (एकेन ऊनः चत्वारिंशत् = 39th)

• अध्यायः: chapter
• अध्यायः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अध्याय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

Speaker

Narrator/Redactor (colophon statement; not a spoken dialogue line)

Vrata Kalpa

Vrata: none

Verse Rasa

Rasa: {"primary_rasa":"shanta","secondary_rasa":"none","emotional_journey":"A formal, settling closure: the text calmly marks the end of the chapter and its topic."}

Characters & Entities

• Bṛhannāradīya Purāṇa
• Mohinī
• Gaṅgā

FAQs

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

This is a colophon marking the completion of a chapter, formally identifying the topic—Gaṅgā bathing as a tīrtha-māhātmya—thereby framing the preceding teaching as an authoritative purāṇic guide to purification and merit through sacred waters.

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

While not a doctrinal bhakti instruction itself, it signals a devotional practice-context: honoring Gaṅgā as sacred and approaching tīrtha-snāna with reverence, which in the Purāṇic worldview supports devotion through purity, faith (śraddhā), and ritual remembrance of the divine.

What practical Vedic knowledge (Vedanga) is highlighted here?

It mainly reflects textual organization and ritual taxonomy rather than a specific Vedāṅga: it classifies the material as a māhātmya (rite-and-place focused teaching) within the Uttara-bhāga, guiding readers toward tīrtha-related ritual practice (snāna) and its intended religious result (puṇya/śuddhi).