Markandeya Purana — Adhyaya 56, Shloka 19

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

Sanskrit

एवमेषा मया गङ्गां कथिता ते द्विजर्षभ ।

जम्बूद्वीपनिवेशश्च वर्षाणि च यथातथम् ॥

Transliteration

evam eṣā mayā gaṅgāṃ kathitā te dvijarṣabha | jambudvīpaniveśaś ca varṣāṇi ca yathātatham ||

Translation

Như vậy, hỡi bậc tối thắng trong hàng nhị sinh, ta đã thuật cho ông về sông Gaṅgā này—cùng với sự sắp đặt của Jambudvīpa và các varṣa (vùng) của nó—đúng như thực trạng.

Word by Word

• evam: thus
• evam: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: evam (अव्यय)
• Form: Indeclinable adverb (प्रकारवाचक अव्यय)

• eṣā: this (she)
• eṣā: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: etad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) → eṣā
• Form: Feminine, Nominative (1st), Singular; pronoun referring to Gaṅgā

• mayā: by me
• mayā: Karana (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) → mayā
• Form: First-person pronoun; Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Singular

• gaṅgām: Gaṅgā
• gaṅgām: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gaṅgā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Accusative (2nd), Singular

• kathitā: has been described/told
• kathitā: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √kath (धातु) → kathitā (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Past passive participle (क्त), Feminine, Nominative, Singular; passive sense with mayā

• te: to you
• te: Sampradana (सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yusmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) → te
• Form: Second-person pronoun; Dative (4th/चतुर्थी), Singular

• dvijarṣabha: O best of the twice-born
• dvijarṣabha: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dvija + ṛṣabha (प्रातिपदिक); compound: dvija-ṛṣabha
• Form: Masculine, Vocative (8th/सम्बोधन), Singular; address

• jambudvīpaniveśaḥ: the arrangement/description of Jambūdvīpa
• jambudvīpaniveśaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jambu-dvīpa + niveśa (प्रातिपदिक); compound: jambudvīpa-niveśa
• Form: Masculine, Nominative (1st), Singular

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

• varṣāṇi: the regions (varṣas)
• varṣāṇi: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: varṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Nominative (1st) / Accusative (2nd), Plural; here coordinated as additional topic described

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

• yathā-tatham: as it is / in due manner
• yathā-tatham: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yathā + tathā (अव्यय-द्वन्द्ववत् युग्मम्)
• Form: Indeclinable pair used adverbially (अव्यय, प्रकारवाचक); fixed expression

Speakers

• Purāṇic narrator to a brāhmaṇa interlocutor (dvijarṣabha)

Verse Rasa

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

Key Themes

• Cosmological summary
• Didactic closure
• Jambudvīpa structure

FAQs

What is the philosophical or ethical takeaway?

The Purāṇa frames cosmography as sacred knowledge to be transmitted responsibly: ‘as it is’ (yathātatham) implies fidelity in teaching and hearing traditional accounts.

How does this fit the Pancalakṣaṇa (5 characteristics)?

This is a colophon-like closure to bhū-varṇana material within the broader Purāṇic teaching.

What is the esoteric significance?

Summarizing the world-map after the river-courses can symbolize integrating many ‘streams’ of experience into a coherent vision (darśana) of order.