Markandeya Purana — Adhyaya 56, Shloka 21

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

Sanskrit

नवस्वपि च वर्षेषु सप्त सप्त कुलाचलाः ।

एकैकस्मिंस्तथा देशे नद्यश्चाद्रिविनिःसृताः ॥

Transliteration

navasv api ca varṣeṣu sapta sapta kulācalāḥ | ekaikasmiṃs tathā deśe nadyaś cādriviniḥsṛtāḥ ||

Translation

并且，在九个雨（varṣa）中的每一雨，各有七与七座主要山岳；同样，在每一方土中，皆有自群山发源而出的诸河。

Word by Word

• nava-su: in nine
• nava-su: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: nava (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Locative (7th/सप्तमी), Plural; numeral used with varṣeṣu: 'in nine'

• api: also
• api: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: api (अव्यय)
• Form: Particle (अपि—समुच्चय/अप्यर्थक अव्यय) meaning 'also/even'

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

• varṣeṣu: in the regions (varṣas)
• varṣeṣu: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: varṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Locative (7th), Plural

• sapta: seven
• sapta: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sapta (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Indeclinable numeral (संख्याशब्द), used attributively

• sapta: seven (each)
• sapta: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sapta (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Indeclinable numeral; distributive sense with repetition: 'seven each'

• kulācalāḥ: principal mountains
• kulācalāḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kula + acala (प्रातिपदिक); compound: kula-acala
• Form: Masculine, Nominative (1st), Plural

• eka-eka-smin: in each
• eka-eka-smin: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: eka + eka (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक) → ekaika; + asmin (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) → smin
• Form: Locative (7th), Singular; distributive 'in each (one by one)' (ekaika + asmin)

• tathā: likewise
• tathā: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tathā (अव्यय)
• Form: Indeclinable adverb (प्रकारवाचक अव्यय)

• deśe: in the land/region
• deśe: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Locative (7th), Singular

• nadyaḥ: rivers
• nadyaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nadī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Nominative (1st), Plural

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

• adri-viniḥsṛtāḥ: issuing forth from mountains
• adri-viniḥsṛtāḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: adri + viniḥsṛta (प्रातिपदिक); compound: adri-viniḥsṛta
• Form: Feminine, Nominative (1st), Plural; adjective qualifying nadyaḥ; viniḥsṛta = 'issued forth'

Speakers

• Purāṇic narrator; structural summary of varṣa geography

Verse Rasa

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

Key Themes

• Cosmography
• Dvīpa-varṣa structure
• Mountains and rivers

FAQs

What is the philosophical or ethical takeaway?

The cosmos is presented as patterned and intelligible: mountains and rivers are not random but structured, encouraging the listener to see order (ṛta-like regularity) in creation.

How does this fit the Pancalakṣaṇa (5 characteristics)?

This is bhū-varṇana (world-description), providing enumerative cosmographic data typical of Purāṇas.

What is the esoteric significance?

Mountains as stable ‘supports’ and rivers as dynamic ‘flows’ can symbolize steadiness and movement—two complementary principles required for sustaining both the outer world and inner discipline.