Shloka 21
Description and Measurements of Śākadvīpa
with Oceans, Mountains, Varṣas, and Rivers
श्यामो यस्मात्प्रवृत्तो वै तस्मात्श्यामगिरिः स्मृतः । ततः परं मुनिश्रेष्ठा दुर्गशैलो महोदयः
śyāmo yasmātpravṛtto vai tasmātśyāmagiriḥ smṛtaḥ | tataḥ paraṃ muniśreṣṭhā durgaśailo mahodayaḥ
ശ്യാമൻ ഏതു സ്ഥലത്തിൽ നിന്നാണ് ഉദ്ഭവിച്ചതോ, അതുകൊണ്ട് അത് ‘ശ്യാമഗിരി’ എന്നു സ്മരിക്കപ്പെടുന്നു. അതിന് അപ്പുറം, ഹേ മുനിശ്രേഷ്ഠന്മാരേ, ‘ദുർഗശൈലം’ എന്ന ഉയർന്ന മഹാമംഗള പർവ്വതം സ്ഥിതിചെയ്യുന്നു.
Unspecified (narratorial voice within the chapter’s pilgrimage/geographical description)
Primary Rasa: adbhuta
Secondary Rasa: shanta
Type: mountain
Sandhi Resolution Notes: यस्मात्प्रवृत्तो = यस्मात् + प्रवृत्तः; तस्मात्श्यामगिरिः = तस्मात् + श्यामगिरिः
FAQs
It preserves sacred geography through etiological naming: a location is remembered by a name (Śyāmagiri) explained via an origin story, and it maps the next landmark (Durgaśaila) in sequence.
By linking landscape to divine names (Śyāma, Durgā), it frames geography as devotional memory—places become supports for remembrance, pilgrimage, and reverence.
It suggests that sacred places are not merely physical; they are carriers of meaning preserved through tradition (smṛti), encouraging reverent attention to lineage, memory, and sanctified space.