Shloka 42

The Greatness of the Kāliṇdī (Yamunā): Merit of Bathing, Charity, and Faith

Devanagari script

एष एव परो मंत्र एतच्च परमं तपः । प्रायश्चित्तं परं चैव यमुनास्नानमुत्तमम्

Transliteration

eṣa eva paro maṃtra etacca paramaṃ tapaḥ | prāyaścittaṃ paraṃ caiva yamunāsnānamuttamam

Translation

นี่แลคือมนตร์อันสูงสุด นี่แลคือบำเพ็ญตบะอันยอดยิ่ง และนี่เองคือการชดใช้บาป (ปรายัศจิตตะ) อันประเสริฐ—คือการอาบน้ำอันเลิศในยมุนา

Word by Word

• एषः: this
• एषः: कर्ता (Karta/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: एतद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular); सर्वनाम

• एव: alone/indeed
• एव: सम्बन्ध (Emphasis)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: अवधारण-निपात (restrictive/emphatic particle)

• परः: supreme
• परः: विधेय (Predicate adjective)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular); विशेषण-प्रयोगः

• मन्त्रः: mantra
• मन्त्रः: कर्ता (Karta/Subject; in apposition with एषः)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मन्त्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular)

• एतत्: this
• एतत्: कर्ता (Karta/Subject; appositional)
• Type: Noun
• Root: एतद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Nom./Acc.), एकवचन (Singular); सर्वनाम (here: nominative in apposition)

• च: and
• च: सम्बन्ध (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्यय (conjunction)

• परमम्: supreme
• परमम्: विधेय (Predicate adjective)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: परम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Nom./Acc.), एकवचन (Singular); विशेषण-प्रयोगः

• तपः: austerity/penance
• तपः: कर्ता (Karta/Subject; apposition)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तपस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular)

• प्रायश्चित्तम्: expiation
• प्रायश्चित्तम्: कर्ता (Karta/Subject; apposition)
• Type: Noun
• Root: प्रायश्चित्त (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Nom./Acc.), एकवचन (Singular)

• परम्: supreme
• परम्: विधेय (Predicate adjective)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Nom./Acc.), एकवचन (Singular); विशेषण-प्रयोगः

• च: and
• च: सम्बन्ध (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्यय (conjunction)

• एव: indeed
• एव: सम्बन्ध (Emphasis)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: अवधारण-निपात (emphatic particle)

• यमुनास्नानम्: bathing in the Yamunā
• यमुनास्नानम्: कर्ता (Karta/Subject; apposition)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यमुना (प्रातिपदिक) + स्नान (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (genitive determinative: 'यमुनायाः स्नानम्'), नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Nom./Acc.), एकवचन (Singular)

• उत्तमम्: excellent/best
• उत्तमम्: विधेय (Predicate adjective)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: उत्तम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Nom./Acc.), एकवचन (Singular); विशेषण-प्रयोगः (यमुनास्नानस्य)

Speaker

Unspecified (contextual speaker not provided in the input; likely part of a didactic dialogue within Svargakhaṇḍa)

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Geographic Context

Type: river

Sandhi Resolution Notes

Sandhi Resolution Notes: एतत् + च → एतच्च; च + एव → चैव.

Characters & Entities

• Yamunā

FAQs

What practice is praised as the highest expiation (prāyaścitta) in this verse?

The verse elevates “Yamunā-snāna” (bathing in the Yamunā River) as the highest form of expiation.

Why does the verse call this act both a “supreme mantra” and “highest tapas”?

It uses devotional hyperbole typical of tīrtha-māhātmya passages: the sacred act (snāna at a holy river) is presented as spiritually equivalent to mantra-recitation and severe austerity, emphasizing its purificatory power.

What ethical or spiritual lesson does this verse convey?

It teaches that purification and spiritual renewal can be pursued through sacred, faith-infused practices—here, reverent bathing at a revered tīrtha—framed as a potent means of atonement and inner transformation.