Shloka 20

Narmadā Māhātmya with the Praise of Amarakantaka Tīrthas

Devanagari script

विस्तारेण तु राजेन्द्र योजनद्वयमंतरम् । षष्टितीर्थसहस्राणि षष्टिकोट्यस्तथैव च

Transliteration

vistāreṇa tu rājendra yojanadvayamaṃtaram | ṣaṣṭitīrthasahasrāṇi ṣaṣṭikoṭyastathaiva ca

Translation

ହେ ରାଜେନ୍ଦ୍ର! ବିସ୍ତାରରେ ଏହା ଦୁଇ ଯୋଜନ ଅନ୍ତର ପର୍ଯ୍ୟନ୍ତ; ଏଠାରେ ଷଷ୍ଟି ହଜାର ତୀର୍ଥ ଏବଂ ସେହିପରି ଷଷ୍ଟି କୋଟି ମଧ୍ୟ ଅଛି ବୋଲି କୁହାଯାଏ।

Word by Word

• विस्तारेण: in extent / by expansion
• विस्तारेण: Karana (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विस्तार (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन; करण/प्रकारवाचक

• तु: but
• तु: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: विरोध/अन्वयार्थक निपात (particle: but/indeed)

• राजेन्द्र: O king of kings
• राजेन्द्र: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: राजन् + इन्द्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, संबोधन (8th/Vocative), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (राज्ञाम् इन्द्रः)

• योजनद्वयम्: two yojanas
• योजनद्वयम्: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: योजन + द्वय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; द्विगु-समास (द्वे योजने)

• अन्तरम्: distance / interval
• अन्तरम्: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अन्तर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन

• षष्टितीर्थसहस्राणि: sixty thousand sacred fords
• षष्टितीर्थसहस्राणि: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: षष्टि + तीर्थ + सहस्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; द्विगु-समास (षष्टिः तीर्थसहस्राणि = sixty thousand tīrthas)

• षष्टिकोट्यः: sixty crores
• षष्टिकोट्यः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: षष्टि + कोटि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; द्विगु-समास (षष्टिः कोटयः)

• तथा: thus
• तथा: Kriya-visheshaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: प्रकारवाचक अव्यय (adverb: thus/so)

• एव: indeed
• एव: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: अवधारणार्थक निपात (emphasis)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक निपात (conjunction)

Speaker

Unspecified narrator in this excerpt (context needed for exact dialogue attribution, commonly framed as Pulastya speaking to Bhīṣma in the Padma Purāṇa).

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Geographic Context

Type: mountain

Sandhi Resolution Notes

Sandhi Resolution Notes: योजनद्वयमंतरम् → योजनद्वयम् + अन्तरम्; षष्टिकोṭ्यस्+तथा → षष्टिकोट्यस्तथा (य्-संधि).

FAQs

What does this verse suggest about the geography of sacred tīrthas?

It presents a sacred landscape measured in yojanas and described through vast enumerations of tīrthas, emphasizing sacred geography through scale and abundance rather than precise cartography.

Why does the Padma Purāṇa use such large numbers (thousands/crores) for tīrthas?

Large numbers function as a literary device to convey inexhaustible sacredness and spiritual merit associated with pilgrimage networks, highlighting their immeasurable religious significance.

What is the practical takeaway for a devotee or pilgrim from this verse?

The verse frames pilgrimage as an expansive, richly populated sacred field—encouraging reverence for tīrthas broadly, not merely a single site, and recognizing the tradition’s vast sacred map.