Vamana Purana — Shiva's Kedara Tirtha, Shloka 18
Shiva’s Kedara-Tirtha and the Rise of Mura: From Shaiva Pilgrimage to Vaishnava Theology
तत्र स्नात्वा शुचिर्भूत्वा जगामाथ सरस्वतीम् वृतां तीर्थशतैः पुण्यैः प्लक्षजां पापनाशिनीम्
tatra snātvā śucirbhūtvā jagāmātha sarasvatīm vṛtāṃ tīrthaśataiḥ puṇyaiḥ plakṣajāṃ pāpanāśinīm
ครั้นอาบน้ำ ณ ที่นั้นแล้วบังเกิดความบริสุทธิ์ เขาจึงไปยังแม่น้ำสรัสวตี—อันแวดล้อมด้วยทิรถะอันเป็นบุญนับร้อย กำเนิดจากปลักษะ และเป็นผู้ทำลายบาป.
{ "primaryRasa": "shanta", "secondaryRasa": "adbhuta", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }
FAQs
It is an epithet indicating Sarasvatī’s association with Plakṣa—understood either as a mythic source-point marked by a Plakṣa tree or as a Plakṣa-region. In tīrtha literature, such epithets function as geographic mnemonics, anchoring a river’s sanctity to a named landmark.
The phrase tīrthaśataiḥ frames Sarasvatī not as a single site but as a corridor of sanctified fords. This is typical of the Vāmana Purāṇa’s geographic style: holiness is distributed across a riverine network, encouraging pilgrimage itineraries rather than a single destination.
Snāna (bathing) is presented as both physical and moral purification; śuci denotes ritual fitness for subsequent acts (japa, worship, vows). The verse sets up the next action—immersion and mantra-recitation—as properly grounded in purity.