Markandeya Purana — Adhyaya 56, Shloka 18

Adhyaya 56 — The Descent and Fourfold Course of the Ganga; Jambudvipa’s Varshas and Their Conditions

Sanskrit

तस्माच्च वृषभादीन् सा क्रमात् प्राप्य शिलोच्चयान् ।

महर्णवमनुप्राप्ता प्लावयित्वोत्तरान् कुरून् ॥

Transliteration

tasmāc ca vṛṣabhādīn sā kramāt prāpya śiloccayān | mahārṇavam anuprāptā plāvayitvottarān kurūn ||

Translation

Mula roon, matapos marating nang sunud-sunod ang mga batuhing mataas na pook na nagsisimula sa Vṛṣabha, at matapos bahain ang Uttara Kuru, dumating siya sa dakilang karagatan.

Word by Word

• tasmāt: from that (place)
• tasmāt: Apadana (अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) → tasmāt
• Form: Neuter/Masculine, Ablative (5th/पञ्चमी), Singular; pronoun

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Conjunction (समुच्चयबोधक अव्यय)

• vṛṣabhādīn: Vṛṣabha and others (mountains/places)
• vṛṣabhādīn: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vṛṣabha-ādi (प्रातिपदिक); compound: vṛṣabha + ādi
• Form: Masculine, Accusative (2nd), Plural (बहुवचन); ādi = 'beginning with', denotes a group

• sā: she
• sā: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) → sā
• Form: Feminine, Nominative (1st), Singular

• kramāt: in sequence / gradually
• kramāt: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: krama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Ablative used adverbially (पञ्चमी-प्रयोगे क्रियाविशेषणभावः); 'in due order/step by step'

• prāpya: having reached
• prāpya: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √prāp (धातु) → prāpya
• Form: Absolutive/gerund (क्त्वान्त/ल्यप्), 'having reached'

• śiloccayān: rocky masses / mountains
• śiloccayān: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śilā + uccaya (प्रातिपदिक); compound: śilā-uccaya
• Form: Masculine, Accusative (2nd), Plural; 'heaps/masses of rocks' (mountainous masses)

• mahārṇavam: the great ocean
• mahārṇavam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā + arṇava (प्रातिपदिक); compound: mahā-arṇava
• Form: Masculine, Accusative (2nd), Singular

• anuprāptā: having reached
• anuprāptā: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: anu-√prāp (धातु) → anuprāptā (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Past passive participle (क्त), Feminine, Nominative, Singular; 'having come to/arrived at'

• plāvayitvā: having flooded
• plāvayitvā: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √plu (धातु) → plāvayitvā (णिजन्त + क्त्वा)
• Form: Causative absolutive/gerund (णिजन्त-क्त्वान्त); 'having caused to float/flooded'

• uttarān: northern
• uttarān: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: uttara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative (2nd), Plural; adjective qualifying kurūn

• kurūn: the Kurus
• kurūn: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kuru (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative (2nd), Plural; people/land of the Kurus

Speakers

• Purāṇic narrator; conclusion of a branch-course description

Verse Rasa

{ "primaryRasa": "adbhuta", "secondaryRasa": "shanta", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }

Primary Deities

• Gaṅgā

Key Themes

• Cosmology
• Mythic ethnogeography (Uttara Kuru)
• Ocean boundaries

FAQs

What is the philosophical or ethical takeaway?

The sacred river is portrayed as universally beneficent—reaching even mythic northern realms—suggesting that dharma and purification are not confined to one locality.

How does this fit the Pancalakṣaṇa (5 characteristics)?

Bhū-varṇana with references to mythic peoples/regions; it complements (but is distinct from) vaṃśa and manvantara sections.

What is the esoteric significance?

Flooding can symbolize overwhelming grace: not merely a gentle cleansing but a total inundation of impurity before merging into the ‘great ocean’ (totality).