Shloka 13

Pūjādi-kathana — Gaṅgā Vratas, Tenfold Worship, Stotra, and Mokṣa on the Riverbank

Devanagari script

गंगातीरे माघमासे यः कुर्यान्नक्तभोजनम् । शिवायतनपार्श्वे तु कृशरं घृतसंयुतम् ॥ १३ ॥

Transliteration

gaṃgātīre māghamāse yaḥ kuryānnaktabhojanam | śivāyatanapārśve tu kṛśaraṃ ghṛtasaṃyutam || 13 ||

Translation

جو شخص ماہِ ماغھ میں گنگا کے کنارے نکت بھوجن کا ورت کرے، اور شِو مندر کے پاس گھی ملی کِرشَرا (کھچڑی) کھائے—یہی مقررہ طریقہ ہے۔

Word by Word

• गङ्गातीरे: on the Ganga’s bank
• गङ्गातीरे: अधिकरण (Adhikaraṇa/Locative)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गङ्गा + तीर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/सप्तमी), एकवचन; Locative singular; ‘on the bank of the Ganga’

• माघमासे: in the month of Māgha
• माघमासे: अधिकरण (Adhikaraṇa/Time)
• Type: Noun
• Root: माघ + मास (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन; Locative singular; ‘in the month of Māgha’

• यः: who
• यः: कर्ता (Kartā/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; Relative pronoun ‘who’

• कुर्यात्: should perform
• कुर्यात्: क्रिया (Kriyā/Predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: कृ (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; ‘should do’

• नक्तभोजनम्: night-meal observance
• नक्तभोजनम्: कर्म (Karma/Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नक्त + भोजन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; Accusative singular

• शिवायतनपार्श्वे: beside Śiva’s shrine
• शिवायतनपार्श्वे: अधिकरण (Adhikaraṇa/Locative)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शिव + आयतन + पार्श्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन; Locative singular; ‘beside the temple of Śiva’

• तु: indeed
• तु: सम्बन्ध (Sambandha/Particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; विरोध/विशेषार्थक particle ‘but/indeed’

• कृशरम्: kṛśara (rice-lentil dish)
• कृशरम्: कर्म (Karma/Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कृशर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसकलिङ्ग (प्रयोगे नपुंसक), द्वितीया, एकवचन; Accusative singular; a rice-lentil dish

• घृतसंयुतम्: mixed with ghee
• घृतसंयुतम्: विशेषण (Viśeṣaṇa/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: घृत + संयुत (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक; युज् धातु)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्यय; agrees with ‘कृशरम्’; ‘mixed with ghee’

Speaker

Suta (narrating the Narada–Sanatkumara dialogue; verse gives vrata-vidhi in the mahatmya section)

Vrata Kalpa

Vrata: Nakta-bhojana vrata (Māgha, Gaṅgā-tīra context)

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: bhakti

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Characters & Entities

• Ganga
• Shiva

FAQs

What is the spiritual significance of this verse in Narada Purana?

It prescribes a Māgha-month tirtha-observance at the Gaṅgā: restraining food to nighttime (naktabhojana) and taking a simple sattvic meal (kṛśara with ghee) near a Śiva shrine, emphasizing purity, restraint, and sanctified place-based merit (tīrtha-phala).

How does this verse explain the path of devotion (Bhakti)?

Bhakti is expressed through disciplined vrata and reverence to sacred loci—Gaṅgā-tīra and Śiva-āyatana—where simple, consecrated living becomes an act of devotion rather than indulgence.

What practical Vedic knowledge (Vedanga) is highlighted here?

Kalpa/ritual discipline is implied: timing rules (Māgha month, naktabhojana) and procedural observance (place near a deity’s shrine, prescribed food), reflecting vrata-vidhi rather than grammar or astrology.