Varaha Purana 13.48: Adhyaya 13, Shloka 48

The Genealogy of the Pitṛs and the Determination of Śrāddha Times

Pūrva Bhāga · Tīrtha–Snāna & Pitṛ-kriyā (Sacred Geography and Ancestral Rites)

Devanagari script

गङ्गासरयूमतवा विपाशां सरस्वतीं नैमिषगोमतीं वा । ततोऽवगाह्यार्चनमादरेण कृत्वा पितॄणामहितानि हन्ति ॥ १३.४८ ॥

Recitation with translationVaraha Purana 13.48

Transliteration

gaṅgā-sarayūm athavā vipāśāṃ sarasvatīṃ naimiṣa-gomatīṃ vā | tato ’vagāhyārcanam ādareṇa kṛtvā pitṝṇām ahitāni hanti || 13.48 ||

ITRANS transliteration

Translation

അതിനുശേഷം ഗംഗാ–സരയൂവിലോ, അല്ലെങ്കിൽ വിപാശാ, സരസ്വതി, അല്ലെങ്കിൽ നൈമിഷ–ഗോമതീ തീർത്ഥജലങ്ങളിലോ മുങ്ങി സ്നാനം ചെയ്ത്, ആദരത്തോടെ അർച്ചന ചെയ്താൽ പിതൃകളെ ബാധിച്ച അനിഷ്ടങ്ങൾ നീങ്ങും।

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Word by Word

• gaṅgām: Gaṅgā (river)
• Type: Noun
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular
• Role: Karma (कर्म)
• Root: gaṅgā (प्रातिपदिक)

• sarayūm: Sarayū (river)
• Type: Noun
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular
• Role: Karma (कर्म)
• Root: sarayū (प्रातिपदिक)

• athavā: or
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: Avyaya, conjunction (समुच्चय/विकल्प)
• Role: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/particle)
• Root: athavā (अव्यय)

• vipāśām: Vipāśā (river)
• Type: Noun
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular
• Role: Karma (कर्म)
• Root: vipāśā (प्रातिपदिक)

• sarasvatīm: Sarasvatī (river)
• Type: Noun
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular
• Role: Karma (कर्म)
• Root: sarasvatī (प्रातिपदिक)

• naimiṣa-gomatīm: Gomatī (at Naimiṣa)
• Type: Noun
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular; कर्मधारय: naimiṣā gomatī (Gomatī at Naimiṣa)
• Role: Karma (कर्म)
• Root: naimiṣa + gomatī (प्रातिपदिक)

• vā: or
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: Avyaya, optionality particle (विकल्प-निपात)
• Role: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/particle)
• Root: vā (अव्यय)

• tataḥ: then/thereafter
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: Avyaya, adverb (क्रियाविशेषण) ‘thereafter/from there’
• Role: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Root: tataḥ (अव्यय)

• avagāhya: having bathed (therein)
• Type: Verb
• Form: Absolutive/Gerund (क्त्वान्त/ल्यप्), indeclinable; ‘having bathed/immersed’
• Role: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Root: ava-√gāh (गाह् धातु)

• arcanam: worship
• Type: Noun
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular
• Role: Karma (कर्म)
• Root: arcana (प्रातिपदिक)

• ādareṇa: with reverence
• Type: Noun
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Singular
• Role: Karaṇa (करण)
• Root: ādara (प्रातिपदिक)

• kṛtvā: having performed
• Type: Verb
• Form: Absolutive/Gerund (क्त्वान्त), indeclinable; ‘having done’
• Role: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Root: kṛ (कृ धातु)

• pitṝṇām: of the ancestors
• Type: Noun
• Form: Masculine, Genitive (षष्ठी), Plural
• Role: Sambandha (षष्ठी-सम्बन्ध)
• Root: pitṛ (प्रातिपदिक)

• ahitāni: harms/inauspicious effects
• Type: Noun
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Plural
• Role: Karma (कर्म)
• Root: ahita (प्रातिपदिक)

• hanti: destroys/removes
• Type: Verb
• Form: Present (लट्), Parasmaipada, 3rd person, Singular
• Role: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Root: han (हन् धातु)

Sandhi Notes

• gaṅgā-sarayūm = gaṅgām + sarayūm (list)
• tato ’vagāhya = tataḥ + avagāhya
• avagāhyārcanam = avagāhya + arcanam

Speaker and setting

Shanta rasa

Speaker

Varāha

Bhu Devi and Varaha

In this verse

Varaha teaches her

Her state of mind

Curious; seeking dharmic clarity on rites and sacred places

What she asks

Which sacred waters and worship, when performed properly, remove afflictions of the Pitṛs?

The teaching

Kind of teaching

Karma-śuddhi through place, act, and intention

Subjects

GeographyHeritage SitesEthics

Core idea

Tīrtha is a dharmic catalyst: when approached with ādara (care/reverence), it transforms ritual into effective ancestral benefit.

In practice

Choose an approved tīrtha, perform full immersion, then arcana with attentiveness; dedicate merit explicitly to Pitṛs.

Dharma

Cross references

Tags

• Classical Literature
• Vaishnavism
• Ancient Geography
• Ritual Studies

FAQs

What is the historical significance of this verse?

It preserves a Purāṇic catalogue of major North Indian tīrthas (sacred waters and regions), reflecting the cultural geography through which pilgrimage, ritual bathing, and ancestral rites were conceptually linked in early-medieval Sanskrit literature.

Which geographic location is identified?

Gaṅgā (Ganges), Sarayū (commonly associated with the Ayodhyā region), Vipāśā (generally identified with the Beas in the Punjab), Sarasvatī (a major sacred river with debated historical courses), Naimiṣa (Naimiṣāraṇya, often placed in present-day Uttar Pradesh), and Gomatī (Gomti River, also in Uttar Pradesh).

What is the primary ethical instruction?

The verse frames careful ritual conduct—bathing and respectful worship—as a disciplined practice connected to intergenerational responsibility, presented here as mitigating adverse conditions attributed to one’s ancestors (pitṛs).