Shloka 12

The Greatness of Avimukta (Kāśī/Vārāṇasī) and the Doctrine of Liberation-in-One-Life

Devanagari script

स्थानांतर पवित्राणि तीर्थान्यायतनानि च । श्मशानसंस्थितान्येव दिव्यभूमिगतानि च

Transliteration

sthānāṃtara pavitrāṇi tīrthānyāyatanāni ca | śmaśānasaṃsthitānyeva divyabhūmigatāni ca

Translation

دیگر علاقوں کے پاک مقامات—تیرتھ اور مقدّس آستانے بھی—جو شمشان (جلانے کی جگہ) میں قائم ہوں، اور جو دیویہ بھومیوں (آسمانی عوالم) میں واقع ہوں، وہ بھی مقدّس ہیں۔

Word by Word

• स्थानान्तर: other places; elsewhere
• स्थानान्तर: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण) — qualifier (contextual)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: स्थान+अन्तर (प्रातिपदिक; समास)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया (Nom/Acc), एकवचन (Singular) used adjectivally in sense 'other places/elsewhere' (collective); तत्पुरुष 'स्थानस्य अन्तरम्' / 'स्थानान्तरम्'

• पवित्राणि: pure; holy
• पवित्राणि: Karta (कर्ता) — subject qualifier (with implied 'are')
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पवित्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा (Nominative/1st), बहुवचन (Plural); तीर्थाणि/आयतनानि इत्यादीनि विशेषयति

• तीर्थानि: pilgrimage places; sacred fords
• तीर्थानि: Karta (कर्ता) — subject (item in list)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तीर्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा (Nominative/1st), बहुवचन (Plural)

• आयतनानि: shrines; abodes
• आयतनानि: Karta (कर्ता) — subject (item in list)
• Type: Noun
• Root: आयतन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा (Nominative/1st), बहुवचन (Plural)

• च: and
• च: None (अकारक)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चय-बोधक (conjunction)

• श्मशानसंस्थितानि: situated in cremation grounds
• श्मशानसंस्थितानि: Karta (कर्ता) — subject qualifier
• Type: Adjective
• Root: श्मशान+संस्थित (प्रातिपदिक; समास; क्त-कृदन्त)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा (Nominative/1st), बहुवचन (Plural); क्त-प्रत्ययान्त 'संस्थित' (situated) + तत्पुरुष 'श्मशाने संस्थितानि' = situated in cremation-grounds; तीर्थाणि/आयतनानि इत्यादीनि विशेषयति

• एव: indeed; certainly
• एव: None (अकारक)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधारण (particle of emphasis) — 'indeed/only'

• दिव्यभूमिगतानि: located on divine ground
• दिव्यभूमिगतानि: Karta (कर्ता) — subject qualifier
• Type: Adjective
• Root: दिव्य+भूमि+गत (प्रातिपदिक; समास; क्त-कृदन्त)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा (Nominative/1st), बहुवचन (Plural); क्त-प्रत्ययान्त 'गत' (gone/located) + तत्पुरुष 'दिव्यायां भूमौ गतानि' = located on divine ground; विशेषण

• च: and
• च: None (अकारक)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चय-बोधक (conjunction)

Speaker

Unspecified in the provided excerpt (context needed from surrounding verses of Svargakhaṇḍa 33).

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: adbhuta

Sandhi Resolution Notes

Sandhi Resolution Notes: तीर्थान्यायतनानि = तीर्थानि + आयतनानि; श्मशानसंस्थितान्येव = श्मशानसंस्थितानि + एव; दिव्यभूमिगतानि (compound) = दिव्य + भूमि + गतानि.

FAQs

What kinds of holy places are grouped together in this verse?

It lists purifying places in other regions, tīrthas (pilgrimage waters), āyatanas (shrines/holy abodes), sites in cremation grounds, and places situated in divine/heavenly realms.

Why would cremation grounds (śmaśāna) be called sacred here?

The verse treats śmaśāna sites as spiritually significant because they confront impermanence and are traditionally associated with intense austerity, renunciation, and transformative rites—hence counted among purifying sacred locations.

What is the practical religious takeaway of the verse?

Holiness is not limited to one locality; pilgrimage and reverence can extend to many categories of sacred geography—shrines, tīrthas, liminal places like cremation grounds, and even celestial realms—encouraging a broad, inclusive understanding of sacred space.