Shloka 81

Account of Various Sacred Tīrthas

Pilgrimage Merits and Prayāga Supremacy

Devanagari script

चतुर्विद्ये च यत्पुण्यं सत्यवादिषु चैव यत् । स्नातएवतदाप्नोतिगंगायामुनसंगमे

Transliteration

caturvidye ca yatpuṇyaṃ satyavādiṣu caiva yat | snātaevatadāpnotigaṃgāyāmunasaṃgame

Translation

ചതുര്വിദ്യകളാൽ ലഭിക്കുന്ന പുണ്യവും സത്യവാദികൾക്കുള്ള പുണ്യവും—ഗംഗാ-യമുന സംഗമത്തിൽ സ്നാനം ചെയ്യുന്നവൻ അതേ പുണ്യം പ്രാപിക്കുന്നു.

Word by Word

• catur-vidye: in the four Vedas/branches of knowledge
• catur-vidye: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: catur (संख्या) + vidyā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative/7th), एकवचन; समासः द्विगु (चतस्रो विद्याः)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Conjunction/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-अव्यय (conjunction: and)

• yat: whatever/that which
• yat: Sambandha (Correlative/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; सम्बन्धसूचक (that which)

• puṇyam: merit
• puṇyam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: puṇya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन

• satyavādiṣu: among truth-speakers
• satyavādiṣu: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: satya-vādin (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative/7th), बहुवचन; समासः कर्मधारय/तत्पुरुषः (सत्यं वदन्ति ये)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Conjunction/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-अव्यय

• eva: indeed
• eva: Sambandha (Emphasis/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: अवधारणार्थक-अव्यय

• yat: whatever/that which
• yat: Sambandha (Correlative/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन

• snātaḥ: one who has bathed
• snātaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: √snā (धातु) + ta (कृत्-प्रत्यय)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (क्त-प्रत्ययान्त past participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; कर्तरि-प्रयोगे (one who has bathed)

• eva: indeed
• eva: Sambandha (Emphasis/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: अवधारणार्थक-अव्यय

• tat: that (merit)
• tat: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन

• āpnoti: attains
• āpnoti: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ā-√āp (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), परस्मैपद, प्रथम-पुरुष (3rd), एकवचन

• gaṅgā-yamunā-saṅgame: at the confluence of the Ganga and Yamuna
• gaṅgā-yamunā-saṅgame: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gaṅgā (प्रातिपदिक) + yamunā (प्रातिपदिक) + saṅgama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative/7th), एकवचन; समासः षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (गङ्गायमुनयोः सङ्गमः)

Speaker

Unspecified (narrative voice not provided in the input excerpt)

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: adbhuta

Geographic Context

Type: river

Sandhi Resolution Notes

Sandhi Resolution Notes: yat+puṇyam → yatpuṇyam (त्+प्); ca+eva → caiva (अ+ए → ऐ); snātaḥ+eva → snāta eva (visarga before vowel; written snātaeva); eva+tat → evatat; tat+āpnoti → tadāpnoti (त्+आ → दा); āpnoti+gaṅgā... → āpnoti gaṅgā... (word boundary).

Characters & Entities

• Ganga
• Yamuna

FAQs

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

It highlights the Gaṅgā–Yamunā confluence (saṅgama), traditionally identified with Prayāga, as a preeminent tīrtha where a single sacred bath is praised as yielding exceptional spiritual merit.

How does this verse emphasize the path of Bhakti?

By elevating a simple act of reverent pilgrimage—bathing at a holy confluence—it underscores accessible, faith-centered practice (tīrtha-sevā) as spiritually potent, not limited only to scholarly attainment.

What is the ethical lesson from this dialogue?

The verse pairs sacred merit with ‘truth-speaking’ (satya), implying that ethical integrity is a high spiritual value and that tīrtha practices are ideally aligned with virtues like truthfulness.