Shloka 1

Śālagrāma-lakṣaṇa: Viṣṇu Stotra, Vyūha/Avatāra Identification, and Temple-Fruition

Devanagari script

नाम चतुश्चत्वारिंशो ऽध्यायः हरिरुवाच / प्रसंगात्कथयिष्यामि शालग्रामस्य लक्षणम् / शालग्रामशिलास्पर्शात्कोटिजन्माघनाशनम्

Transliteration

nāma catuścatvāriṃśo 'dhyāyaḥ hariruvāca / prasaṃgātkathayiṣyāmi śālagrāmasya lakṣaṇam / śālagrāmaśilāsparśātkoṭijanmāghanāśanam

Translation

ہری نے فرمایا—یہ پینتالیسواں باب ہے۔ موقع کے مطابق میں شالگرام کی علامتیں بیان کروں گا۔ شالگرام شِلا کو محض چھونے سے کروڑوں جنموں کے جمع شدہ پاپ نَشٹ ہو جاتے ہیں۔

Word by Word

• nāma: (entitled)
• nāma: Sambandha (Discourse marker/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: nāman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (पदपूरण/हेतु-निर्देशक), here: 'namely/entitled' (indeclinable particle)

• catuḥcatvāriṃśaḥ: forty-fourth
• catuḥcatvāriṃśaḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: catuḥ + catvāriṃśat (प्रातिपदिक; संख्याशब्द)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; संख्यावाचक विशेषण (ordinal sense: 'forty-fourth')

• adhyāyaḥ: chapter
• adhyāyaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: adhyāya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• hariḥ: Hari (Vishnu)
• hariḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: hari (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• uvāca: said
• uvāca: Kriyā (Main verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vac (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• prasaṅgāt: from the occasion; incidentally
• prasaṅgāt: Hetu/Apādāna (Cause/Source/हेतु/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prasaṅga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th/अपादान), एकवचन; हेतौ/निमित्ते (ablative of cause/occasion)

• kathayiṣyāmi: I will narrate
• kathayiṣyāmi: Kriyā (Main verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: kathaya (कथय; णिजन्त from kath/कथ्) (धातु)
• Form: लृट् (Simple Future), उत्तमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• śālagrāmasya: of the Śālagrāma
• śālagrāmasya: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śālagrāma (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/सम्बन्ध), एकवचन

• lakṣaṇam: characteristic; mark
• lakṣaṇam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: lakṣaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन

• śālagrāmaśilāsparśāt: from the touch of the Śālagrāma stone
• śālagrāmaśilāsparśāt: Hetu/Apādāna (Cause/Source/हेतु/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śālagrāma + śilā + sparśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th/अपादान), एकवचन; समास: षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (śālagrāmasya śilāyāḥ sparśaḥ)

• koṭi: crore (ten million)
• koṭi: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: koṭi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, (समासपूर्वपद; अव्ययीभाव/तत्पुरुष-पूर्वाङ्ग), here used as numeral 'crore' in compound

• janma: birth
• janma: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: janman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, (समासपूर्वपद), here 'birth' in compound

• agha: sin
• agha: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: agha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, (समासपूर्वपद), here 'sin' in compound

• nāśanam: destruction (of sins)
• nāśanam: Karta/Predicative (Predicate noun/विधेय)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nāśana (प्रातिपदिक; from √naś/नश्)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; समास: तत्पुरुष (koṭi-janma-agha-nāśanam = 'destroyer of sins of crores of births')

Speaker

Lord Vishnu (Hari)

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Śālagrāma-sparśa as a direct purifier destroying accumulated pāpa across innumerable births.

Vedantic Theme: Īśvara-anugraha and nāma-rūpa as a sanctioned upāsanā-support; grace superseding karmic accretions through devotion.

Application: Keep Śālagrāma with purity; perform respectful darśana/sparśa with ācamana and mantra; cultivate daily Viṣṇu-smaraṇa as a sin-cleansing discipline.

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Geographic Context

Type: tirtha/riverine sacred landscape

Cross References

Related Themes: Garuda Purana: Śālagrāma-māhātmya and Viṣṇu-upāsanā sections (chapter context: 45); Garuda Purana: general pāpa-nāśa claims tied to Viṣṇu-bhakti and tīrtha-sevā (elsewhere in Purāṇa)

Characters & Entities

• Hari
• Śālagrāma
• Śālagrāma-śilā

FAQs

What is the importance of Śālagrāma in the Garuda Purana?

This verse elevates Śālagrāma as a highly purifying sacred form connected with Hari, stating that even its touch destroys vast accumulations of sin, and introduces a chapter devoted to its identifying characteristics.

How does this verse explain the path of the soul in Garuda Purana terms?

Rather than detailing post-death travel, the verse emphasizes purification of agha (sin) through Viṣṇu-centered devotion; such purification is presented as spiritually consequential across many births, supporting liberation-oriented living.

Practical application of this wisdom today?

Approach sacred worship with reverence: if one keeps or visits a Śālagrāma for pūjā, handle it respectfully as a devotional discipline and as a reminder to reduce harmful actions (agha) through dharmic conduct.