Shloka 46

Gautama–Śakra Saṃvāda: Karma, Loka-bheda, and the Restoration of the Elephant

Devanagari script

गयां गयशिरश्वैव विपाशां स्थूलवालुकाम्‌ | कृष्णां गंगां पजचनदं महाह्दमथापि च

Transliteration

gayāṁ gayaśiraś caiva vipāśāṁ sthūlavālukām | kṛṣṇāṁ gaṅgāṁ pañcanadaṁ mahāhradam athāpi ca ||

Translation

持国王说道：“（我曾听闻）伽耶（Gayā）与伽耶首（Gayaśiras）、两岸沙洲宽广的毗婆舍河（Vipāśā）、黑河（Kṛṣṇā）、恒河（Gaṅgā）、五河之地（Pañcanada），以及那大湖。”在此语境中，国王列举诸多著名 tīrtha（圣渡处）——圣地与圣水——其忆念与巡礼被视为能净化、积福，并体现一种伦理理想：以朝圣求 dharma，而非以权势求之。

Word by Word

• गयाम्: Gaya (sacred place)
• गयाम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: गया
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

• गयशिरः: Gayaśiras (the head/peak of Gaya; a sacred spot)
• गयशिरः: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: गयशिरस्
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च

• एव: indeed/also
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव

• विपाशाम्: Vipāśā (river Beas)
• विपाशाम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: विपाशा
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

• स्थूलवालुकाम्: having coarse sand / sandy with large grains
• स्थूलवालुकाम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: स्थूलवालुका
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

• कृष्णाम्: Kṛṣṇā (river; also called Kṛṣṇaveṇī)
• कृष्णाम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: कृष्णा
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

• गङ्गाम्: the Ganges
• गङ्गाम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: गङ्गा
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

• पञ्चनदम्: Pañcanada (land/region of five rivers; Punjab)
• पञ्चनदम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: पञ्चनद
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• महाह्रदम्: a great lake/large pool
• महाह्रदम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: महाह्रद
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• अथ: then/also/next
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अथ

• अपि: also/even
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च

Speaker

धृतराष्ट उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Dhṛtarāṣṭra
• Gayā
• Gayaśiras
• Vipāśā (Beas River)
• Kṛṣṇā (Krishna River)
• Gaṅgā (Ganges River)
• Pañcanada (Pañjāb; land of five rivers)
• Mahāhrada (great lake)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse underscores the Mahābhārata’s emphasis on tīrtha-yātrā—turning toward sacred places and waters as a dharmic means of inner purification and accruing merit, reminding rulers and householders that ethical renewal can be sought through restraint, reverence, and pilgrimage.

What is happening in the narrative?

Dhṛtarāṣṭra is listing celebrated pilgrimage sites—rivers and holy locales—within a broader discourse on dharma and the fruits of visiting or honoring tīrthas, situating moral instruction within India’s sacred geography.