Shloka 37

The Greatness of the Gaṇḍakī River and the Śālagrāma Stone

Devanagari script

प्राणांतकाले पुंसस्तु भवेद्भाग्यवतो नृप । वाचि नाम हरेः पुण्यं शिला हृदि तदंतिके

Transliteration

prāṇāṃtakāle puṃsastu bhavedbhāgyavato nṛpa | vāci nāma hareḥ puṇyaṃ śilā hṛdi tadaṃtike

Translation

Ó rei, no momento da morte o homem torna-se verdadeiramente afortunado: o santo nome de Hari está em sua língua, e uma śilā sagrada repousa sobre o seu coração, colocada bem junto dele.

Word by Word

• प्राण-अन्त-काले: at the time of life’s end
• प्राण-अन्त-काले: Adhikarana (अधिकरण/Location-time)
• Type: Noun
• Root: प्राण (प्रातिपदिक) + अन्त (प्रातिपदिक) + काल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास; पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन

• पुंसः: of a man
• पुंसः: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुमांस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन

• तु: indeed/but
• तु: Avyaya (अव्यय/Particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निपात (emphasis/contrast)

• भवेत्: may be/comes to be
• भवेत्: Kriya (क्रिया/Verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √भू (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन

• भाग्यवतः: of the fortunate one
• भाग्यवतः: Visheshana (विशेषण/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: भाग्यवत् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन; विशेषण (of पुंसः)

• नृप: O king
• नृप: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन/Address)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नृप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (Vocative), एकवचन

• वाचि: in (his) speech/on the tongue
• वाचि: Adhikarana (अधिकरण/Location)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वाच् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन

• नाम: the name (indeed)
• नाम: Avyaya (अव्यय/Particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: नाम (अव्यय/प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधारण/उपपद-निपात (particle: ‘namely/indeed’; also ‘name’)

• हरेः: of Hari (Viṣṇu)
• हरेः: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: हरि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन

• पुण्यम्: merit/holy (thing)
• पुण्यम्: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुण्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• शिला: stone (śilā)
• शिला: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शिला (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• हृदि: in the heart
• हृदि: Adhikarana (अधिकरण/Location)
• Type: Noun
• Root: हृद् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन

• तत्-अन्तिके: near that/close by
• तत्-अन्तिके: Adhikarana (अधिकरण/Proximity)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) + अन्तिक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययीभाव-समास; अव्ययप्रयोग (locative-adverbial: ‘near that/thereby’)

Speaker

Unspecified narrator addressing a king (nṛpa) within the Pātāla-khaṇḍa dialogue frame

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: karuna

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Sandhi Resolution Notes

Sandhi Resolution Notes: प्राणांतकाले = प्राण-अन्त-काले. पुंसस्तु = पुंसः + तु. भवेद्भाग्यवतो = भवेत् + भाग्यवतः. तदंतिके = तत्-अन्तिके (अव्ययीभाव).

Characters & Entities

• Hari (Vishnu)

FAQs

What spiritual ideal is emphasized in this verse?

It highlights antya-smṛti—final remembrance—teaching that dying with Hari’s name on the tongue and with sacred devotional supports nearby is considered the mark of great fortune.

Why is the name of Hari on the tongue important at the time of death?

The verse presents the divine name (nāma) as a direct, purifying focus of consciousness at life’s end—an expression of bhakti that crowns one’s spiritual practice.

What is the ethical lesson conveyed here for daily life?

Cultivate steady devotion and remembrance now—through nāma-japa and reverence for sacred symbols—so that the mind naturally turns to Hari at the final moment.