Shloka 39
Narmadā–Tīrtha-Māhātmya: Sequence of Sacred Fords and Their Fruits
मार्गेश्वरं ततो गच्छेत् स्नानं तत्र समाचरेत् / स्नातमात्रो नरस्तत्र स्वर्गलोकमवाप्नुयात्
mārgeśvaraṃ tato gacchet snānaṃ tatra samācaret / snātamātro narastatra svargalokamavāpnuyāt
จากนั้นพึงไปยังมารเคศวร แล้วประกอบพิธีอาบน้ำศักดิ์สิทธิ์ที่นั่น; เพียงอาบน้ำครั้งเดียว ณ ที่นั้นก็ได้ถึงสวรรค์โลก।
Sūta (narrator) describing tīrtha-mahātmyas to the sages (Naimiṣāraṇya frame)
Primary Rasa: vira
Secondary Rasa: shanta
FAQs
Indirectly: it teaches purification through tīrtha-snānā and devotion to Īśvara (here, Mārgeśvara/Śiva) as supportive means for higher states; it does not explicitly define Ātman, but presumes a moral-causal order where purity and devotion elevate consciousness and destiny.
The practice emphasized is śauca (purificatory discipline) through tīrtha-snānā performed “properly” (samācaret). In Kurma Purana terms, such outer purification complements inner yoga—restraint, devotion, and contemplation—by preparing the practitioner for steadier sādhana.
Though the verse names a Śiva-tīrtha (Mārgeśvara), it appears within a Vaiṣṇava Purāṇa that regularly honors Śiva as a form of Īśvara; the takeaway is practical non-sectarianism—reverence to Śiva-linked tīrthas is affirmed as dharmic and spiritually fruitful within the Kurma Purana’s synthesis.