Vamana Purana — Saptasarasvata Tirtha, Shloka 53

Harihara Revelation and the Tirtha-Glorification of Saptasarasvata in Kurukshetra

Devanagari script

सांनिध्यमत्रैव सुरासुराणां गन्धर्वविद्याधरकिन्नराणाम् सदास्तु धर्मस्य निधानमग्र्यं सारस्वतं पापमलापहारि

Transliteration

sāṃnidhyamatraiva surāsurāṇāṃ gandharvavidyādharakinnarāṇām sadāstu dharmasya nidhānamagryaṃ sārasvataṃ pāpamalāpahāri

Translation

愿此处确有诸天与阿修罗之恒常临在，并有乾闼婆、持明者（Vidyādhara）与紧那罗同在。愿此最胜的萨拉斯瓦塔圣地/圣水，常为法（Dharma）之无上宝藏，涤除罪垢之染。

Word by Word

• सांनिध्यम्: presence; proximity
• सांनिध्यम्: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सांनिध्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• अत्र: here
• अत्र: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण-सूचक)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक अव्यय (locative adverb)

• एव: indeed
• एव: Sambandha (अवधारण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: निश्चय/अवधारणार्थक अव्यय (indeed/only)

• सुर-असुराणाम्: of gods and demons
• सुर-असुराणाम्: Sambandha (षष्ठी/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सुर + असुर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; द्वन्द्वः (इतरेतर) ‘देवाश्च असुराश्च’

• गन्धर्व-विद्याधर-किन्नराणाम्: of Gandharvas, Vidyādharas, and Kinnaras
• गन्धर्व-विद्याधर-किन्नराणाम्: Sambandha (षष्ठी/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गन्धर्व + विद्याधर + किन्नर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; बहुपद-द्वन्द्वः (copulative list)

• सदा: always
• सदा: Kāla (काल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: सदा (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक अव्यय (always)

• अस्तु: let there be
• अस्तु: Kriyā (विध्यर्थक/आशीर्वाद)
• Type: Verb
• Root: अस् (धातु)
• Form: लोट्-लकार, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद (benedictive/let there be)

• धर्मस्य: of dharma; righteousness
• धर्मस्य: Sambandha (षष्ठी/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: धर्म (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• निधानम्: treasury; repository
• निधानम्: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: निधान (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• अग्र्यम्: best; foremost
• अग्र्यम्: Kartṛviśeṣaṇa (कर्तृविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अग्र्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण (qualifies निधानम्)

• सारस्वतम्: Sarasvatī-related; of Sarasvatī
• सारस्वतम्: Kartṛviśeṣaṇa (कर्तृविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सारस्वत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण (pertaining to Sarasvatī)

• पाप-मल-अपहारि: removing the impurity of sin
• पाप-मल-अपहारि: Kartṛviśeṣaṇa (कर्तृविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पाप + मल + अपहारिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; उपपद-तत्पुरुषः ‘पापमलस्य अपहारि’ = remover of sin-impurity

Speakers

• Narrator/teacher voice within the Māhātmya section (speaker not specified in the excerpt) addressing the listener (implicit).

Primary Deities

• Sarasvatī

Key Themes

• Tirtha Mahima
• Purification from sin (pāpa-kṣaya)
• Dharma as a sacred repository
• Celestial attendance at holy places

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

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

FAQs

What is being claimed about the Sarasvata tirtha in this verse?

It is presented as a premier dharma-nidhāna (repository of righteousness) whose sanctity is so great that multiple classes of celestial beings are said to be continually present there, and it is specifically credited with removing pāpa-mala (the ‘stain’ of sin).

Why are both suras (gods) and asuras mentioned together?

Māhātmya passages often use inclusive cosmic lists to signal the tirtha’s universal magnetism: even mutually opposed beings are drawn to the same sacred locus, emphasizing the site’s supra-sectarian and supra-political sanctity.

Does ‘Sārasvata’ here mean the Sarasvatī river or a broader region?

In Purāṇic usage, sārasvata can denote Sarasvatī-related waters (river/lake) and also the associated kṣetra (holy region). The verse’s function is to praise the sanctity of the Sarasvatī-linked tirtha-complex rather than to specify a single hydrological feature.