Varaha Purana 97.44: Adhyaya 97, Shloka 44

The Glory of Rudra: The Origin of the Kapālamocana Pilgrimage Site and Rudra’s Expiatory Vow

Uttara Bhāga · Sacred Geography Itinerary (River Confluences and Tīrthas)

Devanagari script

सरस्वतीं ततो गत्वा यमुनासङ्गमं ततः ॥ शतद्रुं च ततो गत्वा देविकां च महानदीम्

Recitation with translationVaraha Purana 97.44

Transliteration

sarasvatīṃ tato gatvā yamunāsaṅgamaṃ tataḥ || śatadruṃ ca tato gatvā devikāṃ ca mahānadīm

ITRANS transliteration

Translation

తదుపరి సరస్వతీ నదికి వెళ్లి, ఆపై యమునా సంగమానికి; తరువాత శతద్రు నదికి వెళ్లి, మహానదియైన దేవికాకూ వెళ్లెను.

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Word by Word

• सरस्वतीम्: Sarasvatī (river)
• Type: Noun
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (कर्म), एकवचन
• Role: Karma (कर्म)
• Root: सरस्वती (प्रातिपदिक)

• ततः: then/thereupon
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: अव्यय, क्रियाविशेषण (adverb) — ‘thereupon/then’
• Role: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Root: ततः (अव्यय)

• गत्वा: having gone
• Type: Verb
• Form: क्त्वान्त अव्ययकृदन्त (gerund/absolutive), पूर्वकालिक क्रिया (having gone)
• Role: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Root: गम् (धातु) + त्वा (क्त्वा-प्रत्यय)

• यमुनासङ्गमम्: confluence of the Yamunā
• Type: Noun
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: यमुनायाः सङ्गमः), पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग ‘सङ्गम’प्रातिपदिक; द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन
• Role: Karma (कर्म)
• Root: यमुना (प्रातिपदिक) + सङ्गम (प्रातिपदिक)

• ततः: then/from there
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: अव्यय, क्रियाविशेषण — ‘then/from there’
• Role: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Root: ततः (अव्यय)

• शतद्रुम्: Śatadru (river)
• Type: Noun
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (नदी-नाम), द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन
• Role: Karma (कर्म)
• Root: शतद्रु (प्रातिपदिक)

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: अव्यय, समुच्चय-बोधक निपात (conjunction)
• Role: Samuccaya (समुच्चय)
• Root: च (अव्यय)

• ततः: then
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: अव्यय, क्रियाविशेषण — ‘then’
• Role: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Root: ततः (अव्यय)

• गत्वा: having gone
• Type: Verb
• Form: क्त्वान्त अव्ययकृदन्त (gerund), पूर्वकालिक क्रिया
• Role: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Root: गम् (धातु) + त्वा (क्त्वा-प्रत्यय)

• देविकाम्: Devikā (river)
• Type: Noun
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन
• Role: Karma (कर्म)
• Root: देविका (प्रातिपदिक)

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: अव्यय, समुच्चय-बोधक (conjunction)
• Role: Samuccaya (समुच्चय)
• Root: च (अव्यय)

• महानदीम्: the great river
• Type: Noun
• Form: कर्मधारय-समास (महती नदी), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन
• Role: Karma (कर्म)
• Root: महा (प्रातिपदिक) + नदी (प्रातिपदिक)

Sandhi Notes

• यमुनासङ्गमम् = यमुना + सङ्गमम् (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष)
• महानदीम् = महा + नदीम् (कर्मधारय)

Speaker and setting

Shanta and Adbhuta rasaSetting: Sacred rivers and confluences (tīrthas)

Speaker

Varāha

The teaching

Kind of teaching

Tīrtha-sādhana (purification through sacred geography)

Subjects

GeographyHeritage SitesSacred RiversPilgrimage Networks

Core idea

Movement through tīrthas is a mode of inner purification; rivers function as living embodiments of merit (puṇya) and remembrance.

In practice

Undertake pilgrimage with sequential discipline (krama), honoring each river as a locus of cleansing and ethical renewal; integrate travel with restraint, charity, and remembrance.

Mathura and Krishna

Cross references

Tags

• Ancient Geography
• Sacred Hydrology
• Tīrtha Literature
• Purāṇic Itineraries

FAQs

What is the historical significance of this verse?

It documents a network of riverine sacred sites, supporting research into pilgrimage geographies and the cultural mapping of North Indian river systems in Purāṇic literature.

Which geographic location is identified?

Sarasvatī; Yamunā-saṅgama (a confluence site); Śatadru (commonly identified with the Sutlej); Devikā (a river name preserved in Purāṇic and regional traditions, with identifications debated in scholarship).

What is the primary ethical instruction?

The passage promotes a heritage practice of moving through and recognizing river landscapes as culturally significant, implying stewardship and reverence for water bodies as shared civilizational resources.