Shloka 4
Narmadā Māhātmya with the Praise of Amarakantaka Tīrthas
नारद उवाच । नर्मदा सरितां श्रेष्ठा सर्वपापप्रणाशिनी । तारयेत्सर्वभूतानि स्थावराणि चराणि च
nārada uvāca | narmadā saritāṃ śreṣṭhā sarvapāpapraṇāśinī | tārayetsarvabhūtāni sthāvarāṇi carāṇi ca
नारद उवाच— नर्मदा सरितां श्रेष्ठा सर्वपापप्रणाशिनी; सा स्थावराणि चराणि च सर्वभूतानि तारयेत्।
Nārada
Primary Rasa: adbhuta
Secondary Rasa: shanta
Type: river
Sandhi Resolution Notes: तारयेत्सर्वभूतानि = तारयेत् + सर्वभूतानि।
FAQs
It declares Narmadā the foremost among rivers and attributes to her the power to destroy all sins, marking her as a supreme tīrtha (sacred ford).
It is a traditional Sanskrit pair meaning all categories of life—immobile entities like plants (and figuratively the fixed world) and mobile beings like animals and humans—indicating universal beneficence.
The verse promotes reverence for sacred rivers and the practice of tīrtha-related devotion (such as pilgrimage, bathing, and remembrance) as a means of inner purification and upliftment.