Shloka 3

The Greatness of Śukla Tīrtha: Bathing, Fasting, Charity, and Śiva Worship

Devanagari script

हिमवच्छिखरे रम्ये नानाधातुविचित्रिते । तरुणादित्यसंकाशे तप्तकांचनसंनिभे

Transliteration

himavacchikhare ramye nānādhātuvicitrite | taruṇādityasaṃkāśe taptakāṃcanasaṃnibhe

Translation

ഹിമവത് പർവതത്തിന്റെ മനോഹര ശിഖരത്തിൽ, നാനാധാതുക്കളുടെ വൈവിധ്യത്തിൽ ചിത്രിതമായി—പുതുതായി ഉദിച്ച സൂര്യനെപ്പോലെ ദീപ്തവും, ചൂടേറ്റ സ്വർണ്ണംപോലെ പ്രകാശവുമായിരുന്നു.

Word by Word

• हिमवत्-शिखरे: on the peak of Himavat (Himalaya)
• हिमवत्-शिखरे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: हिमवत् (प्रातिपदिक) + शिखर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (अधिकरण), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः: हिमवतः शिखरम्)

• रम्ये: beautiful, delightful
• रम्ये: Visheshana (Adjectival modifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: रम्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषणम् (शिखरे प्रति)

• नाना-धातु-विचित्रिते: variegated with various minerals
• नाना-धातु-विचित्रिते: Visheshana (Adjectival modifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: नाना (अव्यय/प्रातिपदिक) + धातु (प्रातिपदिक) + विचित्रित (कृदन्त; वि+चित्र्/चित्र् धातु)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; कृदन्त-विशेषण (क्त-प्रत्ययान्त ‘विचित्रित’); समास: तत्पुरुष (करण/तृतीया-भावः: नानाधातुभिः विचित्रितम्)

• तरुण-आदित्य-संकाशे: resembling the young sun
• तरुण-आदित्य-संकाशे: Visheshana (Adjectival modifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तरुण (प्रातिपदिक) + आदित्य (प्रातिपदिक) + संकाश (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषणम्; समास: तत्पुरुष (उपमान-भावः: तरुणादित्यवत् संकाशः)

• तप्त-काञ्चन-सन्निभे: like heated gold
• तप्त-काञ्चन-सन्निभे: Visheshana (Adjectival modifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तप्त (कृदन्त; तप् धातु, क्त) + काञ्चन (प्रातिपदिक) + सन्निभ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषणम्; समास: तत्पुरुष (उपमान-भावः: तप्तकाञ्चनवत् सन्निभः)

Speaker

Unspecified narrator (context-dependent within Svarga-khaṇḍa dialogues)

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Geographic Context

Type: mountain

Sandhi Resolution Notes

Sandhi Resolution Notes: हिमवत्+शिखरे → हिमवच्छिखरे (त्+श → च्छ); नाना+धातु+विचित्रिते → नानाधातुविचित्रिते; तरुण+आदित्य+संकाशे → तरुणादित्यसंकाशे; तप्त+काञ्चन+सन्निभे → तप्तकांचनसंनिभे (आ/ा लिप्यन्तर: काञ्चन)

Characters & Entities

• Himavat (Himalaya)

FAQs

What does this verse reveal about the geography of sacred Tirthas?

It uses Himalayan topography (a Himavat peak) and mineral-rich imagery to frame a luminous, elevated sacred landscape—typical of Purāṇic tīrtha and divine-location descriptions.

How does this verse emphasize the path of Bhakti?

Indirectly: by sanctifying a radiant, awe-inspiring setting, it prepares the devotional mood (bhāva) in which divine acts, worship, or pilgrimage narratives are often situated in the Svarga-khaṇḍa.

What is the ethical lesson from this dialogue?

The verse primarily offers descriptive imagery rather than an explicit moral teaching; its implicit lesson is reverence for sacred places and the contemplative appreciation of the divine order reflected in nature’s splendor.