Narada Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 51

The Greatness of the Gaṅgā (Gaṅgā-māhātmya): Saudāsa/Kalmāṣapāda’s Curse and Release

Devanagari script

विचरन्नर्मदातीरे सर्वलोकभयंकरः । अपश्यत्कंचन मुनिं रमन्तं प्रियया सह ॥ ५२ ॥

Transliteration

vicarannarmadātīre sarvalokabhayaṃkaraḥ | apaśyatkaṃcana muniṃ ramantaṃ priyayā saha || 52 ||

Translation

ကမ္ဘာလောကတစ်ခုလုံးအတွက် ကြောက်မက်ဖွယ်ကောင်းသော သူသည် နာမဒါမြစ်ကမ်းပါးတစ်လျှောက် လှည့်လည်သွားလာနေစဉ်၊ ချစ်သူနှင့်အတူ ပျော်ရွှင်နေသော ရသေ့တစ်ပါးကို မြင်တွေ့ခဲ့သည်။

Word by Word

• विचरन्: wandering
• विचरन्: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वि-चर् (धातु)
• Form: शतृ-प्रत्ययान्त वर्तमानकृदन्त (Present active participle); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — ‘wandering’

• नर्मदा-तीरे: on the bank of the Narmadā
• नर्मदा-तीरे: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नर्मदा (प्रातिपदिक) + तीर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन — Locative singular; ‘नर्मदायाः तीरे’

• सर्व-लोक-भयम्-करः: terror to all worlds/people
• सर्व-लोक-भयम्-करः: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्व (प्रातिपदिक) + लोक (प्रातिपदिक) + भय (प्रातिपदिक) + कर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन — Nominative singular; तत्पुरुषः ‘सर्वेषां लोकानां भयम् करोति’ विशेषण (विचरन्/सः)

• अपश्यत्: saw
• अपश्यत्: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: दृश् (धातु)
• Form: लङ्-लकार; प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन — 3rd person singular (saw)

• कंचन: a certain
• कंचन: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: कंचन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन — Accusative singular; अनिश्चितवाचक-विशेषण (some/one) विशेषण (मुनिम्)

• मुनिम्: sage
• मुनिम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मुनि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन — Accusative singular

• रमन्तम्: enjoying; sporting
• रमन्तम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Verb
• Root: रम् (धातु)
• Form: शतृ-प्रत्ययान्त वर्तमानकृदन्त; पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन — Accusative singular; विशेषण (मुनिम्) ‘delighting/playing’

• प्रियया: with (his) beloved
• प्रियया: Sahakaraka (सहकारक)
• Type: Noun
• Root: प्रिया (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; तृतीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन — Instrumental singular (with his beloved)

• सह: together with
• सह: Sahakaraka (सहकारक)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: सह (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; सहार्थक-उपपद — indeclinable used with तृतीया (with)

Speaker

Narada (narrative voice within the Narada Purana dialogue tradition)

Vrata Kalpa

Vrata: none

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka

Characters & Entities

• Narmada
• Muni

FAQs

What is the spiritual significance of this verse in Narada Purana?

It introduces a tirtha-setting (the Narmadā bank) where transformative instruction often unfolds in the Purāṇas—an encounter with a muni becomes the doorway to dharma-teaching through lived example and contrast.

How does this verse explain the path of devotion (Bhakti)?

Bhakti is implied indirectly: sacred geography (Narmadā-tīra) and saintly association are classic supports for devotion, preparing the mind for higher instruction even before explicit Vishnu-bhakti is stated.

What practical Vedic knowledge (Vedanga) is highlighted here?

No specific Vedāṅga (like Vyākaraṇa or Jyotiṣa) is taught in this single verse; the practical takeaway is the Purāṇic method of dharma-instruction via narrative encounter in a tirtha context.