Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 15
स स्नातः सर्वतीर्थेषु सोमपानं दिने दिने । गङ्गाद्याः सरितः सर्वाः समुद्राश्च सरांसि च । कल्पान्ते संक्षयं यान्ति न मृता तेन नर्मदा
sa snātaḥ sarvatīrtheṣu somapānaṃ dine dine | gaṅgādyāḥ saritaḥ sarvāḥ samudrāśca sarāṃsi ca | kalpānte saṃkṣayaṃ yānti na mṛtā tena narmadā
तो जणू सर्व तीर्थांत स्नान केलेला आणि दिवसेंदिवस सोमपान करणारा होय. गंगा इत्यादी सर्व नद्या, समुद्र व सरोवरे कल्पांती क्षय पावतात; म्हणून नर्मदा ‘मृत’ नाही—ती नाश पावत नाही।
Mārkaṇḍeya (contextual attribution within Revā Khaṇḍa)
Tirtha: Revā (Narmadā)
Type: kshetra
Scene: Cosmic panorama: rivers, lakes, and oceans fading into pralaya mist, while the Revā remains luminous and flowing; a devotee performs snāna, receiving ‘sarva-tīrtha’ merit and soma-like bliss.
FAQs
Narmadā is proclaimed uniquely inexhaustible in sanctity, granting the combined merit of all pilgrimages and exalted ritual rewards.
The Narmadā (Revā) herself as a supreme tīrtha, compared against all rivers and waters.
Snāna (bathing) in the sacred context is implied as the merit-yielding act; the verse also uses Soma-pāna as a comparison of reward.