Shloka 15

The Glory of Bhārata-varṣa: Enumerating Mountains, Rivers, and Regions

Devanagari script

कौशिकीं त्रिदिवां हृद्यां नाचितां रोहितारणीम् । रहस्यां शतकुंभां च सरयूं च द्विजोत्तमाः

Transliteration

kauśikīṃ tridivāṃ hṛdyāṃ nācitāṃ rohitāraṇīm | rahasyāṃ śatakuṃbhāṃ ca sarayūṃ ca dvijottamāḥ

Translation

โอ้ผู้ประเสริฐในหมู่ทวิชะ กล่าวถึงแม่น้ำ เกาศิกี ตริดิวา หฤทยา นาจิตา โรหิตารณี; และยังมี รหัสยา ศตกุมภา และสรยู

Word by Word

• कौशिकीम्: Kauśikī (river name)
• कौशिकीम्: कर्म (Karma/Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कौशिकी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• त्रिदिवाम्: Tridivā (river name)
• त्रिदिवाम्: कर्म (Karma/Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: त्रिदिवा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: समास: त्रि + दिव (तत्पुरुष; ‘three heavens’/‘heavenly’ as name), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• हृद्याम्: Hṛdyā (river name; ‘pleasing’)
• हृद्याम्: कर्म (Karma/Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: हृद्या (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• नाचिताम्: Nācitā (river name)
• नाचिताम्: कर्म (Karma/Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नाचिता (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• रोहितारणीम्: Rohitāraṇī (river name)
• रोहितारणीम्: कर्म (Karma/Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: रोहितारणी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: समास: रोहित + अरणी (तत्पुरुष; name), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• रहस्याम्: Rahasyā (river name; ‘mysterious/secret’)
• रहस्याम्: कर्म (Karma/Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: रहस्या (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• शतकुम्भाम्: Śatakuṃbhā (river name)
• शतकुम्भाम्: कर्म (Karma/Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शतकुम्भा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: समास: शत (100) + कुम्भ (pot) → द्विगु (numerical compound; name), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• च: and
• च: समुच्चय (Conjunction/समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक अव्यय (conjunction)

• सरयूम्: Sarayū (river name)
• सरयूम्: कर्म (Karma/Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सरयू (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया विभक्ति, एकवचन

• च: and
• च: समुच्चय (Conjunction/समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक अव्यय (conjunction)

• द्विजोत्तमाः: the best Brahmins (twice-born)
• द्विजोत्तमाः: कर्ता (Karta/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: द्विजोत्तम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: समास: द्विज + उत्तम (तत्पुरुष; ‘best of the twice-born’), पुल्लिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), बहुवचन (Plural)

Speaker

Unspecified narrator (contextual address to 'dvijottamāḥ')

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Geographic Context

Type: river

Characters & Entities

• Kauśikī
• Tridivā
• Hṛdyā
• Nācitā
• Rohitāraṇī
• Rahasyā
• Śatakuṃbhā
• Sarayū

FAQs

What is the main purpose of this verse in the Svargakhaṇḍa?

It enumerates a set of sacred rivers, functioning as a tīrtha-style catalogue that highlights places associated with religious merit (puṇya) and pilgrimage.

Which identifiable river in this list is widely known from other Sanskrit sources?

Sarayū is well known from Itihāsa-Purāṇa literature and is especially associated with the Ayodhyā region and sacred geography.

How should readers interpret lesser-known river names like Tridivā or Nācitā?

In Purāṇic catalogues, some hydronyms may be regional, archaic, or sanctified names; they are best read as part of a broader sacred map rather than as always-identifiable modern toponyms.