Vamana Purana — Kurukshetra & Prithudaka Tirtha, Shloka 20

Kurukshetra, Pṛthūdaka Tīrtha, and the Marriage of Saṃvaraṇa with Tapatī

Devanagari script

तस्माद् गच्छत पुण्यं तत् कुरुक्षेत्रं महाफलम् तत्र पृथूदके तीर्थे पूज्यन्तां पितरो ऽव्ययः

Transliteration

tasmād gacchata puṇyaṃ tat kurukṣetraṃ mahāphalam tatra pṛthūdake tīrthe pūjyantāṃ pitaro 'vyayaḥ

Translation

پس تم اس پاکیزہ اور عظیم ثمر دینے والے کُرُکشیتر کو جاؤ۔ وہاں ‘پرتھودک’ نامی تیرتھ میں پِتروں کی پوجا کی جائے، جس کا ثواب اَمر و اَبدی ہے۔

Word by Word

• तस्मात्: therefore/from that
• तस्मात्: Hetu/Apadana (हेतु/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम; पुल्लिङ्ग/नपुंसक; पञ्चमी (Ablative); एकवचन

• गच्छत: go
• गच्छत: Kriya (क्रिया/Verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: गम् (धातु)
• Form: लोट् (Imperative); मध्यमपुरुष; बहुवचन; परस्मैपद

• पुण्यम्: holy/meritorious
• पुण्यम्: Karma-anvaya (कर्म-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पुण्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया; एकवचन; विशेषण कुरुक्षेत्रम् इति

• तत्: that
• तत्: Karma (कर्म/Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम; नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया; एकवचन; निर्देश (that)

• कुरुक्षेत्रम्: Kurukṣetra
• कुरुक्षेत्रम्: Karma (कर्म/Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कुरुक्षेत्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया; एकवचन; समासः—कुरूणां क्षेत्रम् (field of the Kurus)

• महाफलम्: of great result
• महाफलम्: Karma-anvaya (कर्म-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: महा + फल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया; एकवचन; समासः—महत् फलम् (great-fruited) विशेषण कुरुक्षेत्रम् इति

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक (adverb of place)

• पृथूदके: at Pṛthūdaka
• पृथूदके: Adhikarana (अधिकरण/Location)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पृथूदक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; सप्तमी (Locative); एकवचन; समासः—पृथु उदकं यस्मिन् (broad waters) / नामधेय (name of a tīrtha)

• तीर्थे: at the sacred ford
• तीर्थे: Adhikarana (अधिकरण/Location)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तीर्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; सप्तमी; एकवचन

• पूज्यन्ताम्: let (them) be worshipped
• पूज्यन्ताम्: Kriya (क्रिया/Verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: पूज् (धातु)
• Form: लोट् (Imperative); प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person); बहुवचन; कर्मणि प्रयोग (Passive); आदेशार्थ (let them be worshipped)

• पितरः: the Pitṛs
• पितरः: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पितृ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग; प्रथमा; बहुवचन

• अव्ययाः: imperishable
• अव्ययाः: Karta-anvaya (कर्तृ-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अव्यय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग; प्रथमा; बहुवचन; विशेषण पितरः इति (imperishable)

Speakers

• Narrative voice within Pulastya’s account (context suggests instruction directed to the Devas or seekers)

Primary Deities

• Pitṛs (ancestral divinities)

Key Themes

• Sacred Geography
• Pitṛ-yajña / Ancestor rites
• Tīrtha-māhātmya
• Merit (puṇya) and its inexhaustibility

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

What is the philosophical or ethical takeaway?

The verse emphasizes dharma expressed as gratitude and obligation to one’s lineage: honoring the Pitṛs at a sanctified place is presented as a high-yield act whose merit is enduring. It frames pilgrimage not as mere travel but as a disciplined, relational duty (ṛṇa) toward ancestors.

How does this fit the Pancalakshana?

This passage aligns best with tīrtha-māhātmya material often embedded within Purāṇic narration; within the pañcalakṣaṇa frame it is ancillary to vamśānucarita (narrative instruction) rather than core sarga/pratisarga. It functions as dharma-upadeśa (ritual-ethical instruction) attached to the narrative layer.

What is the symbolic significance?

Kurukṣetra symbolizes a concentrated field of dharma where actions mature quickly (‘mahāphala’). Pṛthūdaka, as a named water-tīrtha, signifies purification and continuity—water as the medium through which offerings reach the Pitṛs, making ‘avyaya’ merit an image of unbroken ancestral connection.