दैवेष्व् एव प्रदेशेषु तपस् तप्त्वा महर्षयः दैवप्रभावात् तपस आर्षाण्य् अपि च तान्य् अपि
In the regions of the divine, the great sages performed austerities; by the power of the divine and their penance, even the sage-born fords became so.
आत्मनः श्रेयसे मुक्त्यै पूजायै भूतये ऽथवा आत्मनः फलभूत्यर्थं यशसो ऽवाप्तये पुनः
For one's own welfare, for liberation, for worship, for prosperity, or for the sake of personal gain, or again for the attainment of fame—
मानुषैः कारितान्य् आहुर् मानुषाणीति नारद एवं चतुर्विधो भेदस् तीर्थानां मुनिसत्तम
Those established by humans are called human fords, O Narada; thus, O best of sages, there is a fourfold division of sacred fords.
भेदं न कश्चिज् जानाति श्रोतुं युक्तो ऽसि नारद बहवः पण्डितंमन्याः शृण्वन्ति कथयन्ति च सुकृती को ऽपि जानाति वक्तुं श्रोतुं निजैर् गुणैः
No one knows the distinction; you are fit to hear, O Narada. Many who consider themselves learned listen and speak, but only a virtuous one knows how to speak or hear by their own qualities.
तेषां स्वरूपं भेदं च श्रोतुम् इच्छामि तत्त्वतः यच् छ्रुत्वा सर्वपापेभ्यो मुच्यते नात्र संशयः
I wish to hear, in truth, their nature and distinctions; by hearing this, one is freed from all sins—of this there is no doubt.
ब्रह्मन् कृतयुगादौ तु उपायो ऽन्यो न विद्यते तीर्थसेवां विना स्वल्पायासेनाभीष्टदायिनीम्
O Brahman, at the beginning of the Krita age, there was no other means except service to the sacred fords, which grants the desired result with little effort.
न त्वया सदृशो धातर् वक्ता ज्ञाताथवा क्वचित् त्वं नाभिकमले विष्णोः संजातो ऽखिलपूर्वजः
There is no one like you, O Creator, as a speaker or knower; you were born in the lotus of Vishnu's navel, the eldest of all.
गोदावरी भीमरथी तुङ्गभद्रा च वेणिका तापी पयोउष्णी विन्ध्यस्य दक्षिणे तु प्रकीर्तिताः
The Godavari, Bhimarathi, Tungabhadra, Venika, Tapi, and Payoshni are proclaimed to the south of the Vindhya.
भागीरथी नर्मदा तु यमुना च सरस्वती विशोका च वितस्ता च हिमवत्पर्वताश्रिताः
The Bhagirathi, Narmada, Yamuna, Sarasvati, Vishoka, and Vitasta are situated on the Himalaya mountains.
एता नद्यः पुण्यतमा देवतीर्थान्य् उदाहृताः गयः कोल्लासुरो वृत्रस् त्रिपुरो ह्य् अन्धकस् तथा
These rivers are most holy, declared as divine fords: Gaya, Kollasura, Vritra, Tripura, and likewise Andhaka.
हयमूर्धा च लवणो नमुचिः शृङ्गकस् तथा यमः पातालकेतुश् च मयः पुष्कर एव च
Hayamūrdhā, Lavaṇa, Namuci, Śṛṅgaka, Yama, Pātālaketu, Maya, and Puṣkara—
एतैर् आवृततीर्थानि आसुराणि शुभानि च प्रभासो भार्गवो ऽगस्तिर् नरनारायणौ तथा
By these, the tīrthas belonging to the Asuras, both auspicious and otherwise, are surrounded; Prabhāsa, Bhārgava, Agastya, and likewise Nara-Nārāyaṇa—
वसिष्ठश् च भरद्वाजो गोतमः कश्यपो मनुः इत्यादिमुनिजुष्टानि ऋषितीर्थानि नारद
Vasiṣṭha, Bharadvāja, Gotama, Kaśyapa, Manu—these and other sages, O Nārada, have sanctified the tīrthas of the seers.
अम्बरीषो हरिश्चन्द्रो मान्धाता मनुर् एव च कुरुः कनखलश् चैव भद्राश्वः सगरस् तथा
Ambarīṣa, Hariścandra, Māndhātṛ, Manu, Kuru, Kanakhala, Bhadrāśva, and likewise Sagara—
अश्वयूपो नाचिकेता वृषाकपिर् अरिंदमः इत्यादिमानुषैर् विप्र निर्मितानि शुभानि च
Aśvayūpa, Naciketas, Vṛṣākapi, Ariṃdama—these and other men, O sage, have established auspicious tīrthas.
यशसः फलभूत्यर्थं निर्मितानीह नारद स्वतोउद्भूतानि दैवानि यत्र क्वापि जगत्त्रये पुण्यतीर्थानि तान्य् आहुस् तीर्थभेदो मयोदितः
For the sake of fame, fruit, and prosperity, these have been established here, O Nārada; and the divine tīrthas, self-manifested in various places throughout the three worlds, are called the sacred tīrthas. This, the distinction of tīrthas, has been declared by me.
त्रिदैवत्यं तु यत् तीर्थं सर्वेभ्यो ह्य् उक्तम् उत्तमम् तस्य स्वरूपभेदं च विस्तरेण ब्रवीतु मे
Now, that tīrtha which is dedicated to the Three Deities is said to be the highest of all; tell me in detail its various forms.
तावद् अन्यानि तीर्थानि तावत् ताः पुण्यभूमयः तावद् यज्ञादयो यावत् त्रिदैवत्यं न दृश्यते
So long as the tīrthas are other than this, so long as those holy places exist, so long as sacrifices and the like are performed, until the Threefold Divinity is perceived.
गङ्गेयं सरितां श्रेष्ठा सर्वकामप्रदायिनी त्रिदैवत्या मुनिश्रेष्ठ तदुत्पत्तिम् अतः शृणु
The Gaṅgā is the best of rivers, fulfilling all desires; it is of the Threefold Divinity, O best of sages—therefore, listen to its origin.
वर्षाणाम् अयुतात् पूर्वं देवकार्य उपस्थिते तारको बलवान् आसीन् मद्वराद् अतिगर्वितः
Ten thousand years ago, when the work of the gods was at hand, Tāraka, empowered by my boon, became exceedingly arrogant.
देवानां परमैश्वर्यं हृतं तेन बलीयसा ततस् ते शरणं जग्मुर् देवाः सेन्द्रपुरोगमाः
By that powerful one, the supreme dominion of the gods was taken; then the gods, with Indra at their head, sought refuge.
क्षीरोदशायिनं देवं जगतां प्रपितामहम् कृताञ्जलिपुटा देवा विष्णुम् ऊचुर् अनन्यगाः
The gods, with hands joined in reverence, approached Viṣṇu, the Lord reclining on the ocean of milk, the great grandsire of the worlds, and addressed him with single-minded devotion.
त्वं त्राता जगतां नाथ देवानां कीर्तिवर्धन सर्वेश्वर जगद्योने त्रयीमूर्ते नमो ऽस्तु ते
You are the protector of the worlds, the Lord, the increaser of the gods' glory, the sovereign of all, the source of the universe, the embodiment of the three Vedas—we bow to you.
लोकस्रष्टासुरान् हन्ता त्वम् एव जगतां पतिः स्थित्युत्पत्तिविनाशानां कारणं त्वं जगन्मय
You alone are the creator of the worlds, the destroyer of Asuras, the Lord of the universe; you are the cause of creation, preservation, and destruction, O all-pervading one.
त्राता न कोप्य् अस्ति जगत्त्रये ऽपि शरीरिणां सर्वविपद्गतानाम् त्वया विना वारिजपत्त्रनेत्र तापत्रयाणां शरणं न चान्यत्
There is truly no other protector in the three worlds for embodied beings, for all those beset by calamities, O lotus-eyed one; apart from you, there is no other refuge from the threefold miseries.
पिता च माता जगतो ऽखिलस्य त्वम् एव सेवासुलभो ऽसि विष्णो प्रसीद पाहीश महाभयेभ्यो श्मदार्तिहन्ता वद कस् त्वदन्यः
You alone are the father and mother of the entire world, O Viṣṇu, easily accessible through service; be gracious, Lord, save us from great dangers. Who else but you removes our distress?
आदिकर्ता वराहस् त्वं मत्स्यः कूर्मस् तथैव च इत्यादिरूपभेदैर् नो रक्षसे भय आगते
You are the primeval creator, the Boar, the Fish, the Tortoise, and so on; by these various forms, you protect us when danger arises.
हृतस्वाम्यान् सुरगणान् हृतदारान् गतापदः कस्मान् न रक्षसे देव अनन्यशरणान् हरे
The hosts of gods have lost their sovereignty, their wives taken, their positions gone—why, O Lord, do you not protect those who have no other refuge, O Hari?
ततः प्रोवाच भगवाञ् शेषशायी जगत्पतिः कस्माच् च भयम् आपन्नं तद् ब्रुवन्तु गतज्वराः ततः श्रियः पतिं प्राहुस् तं तारकवधं प्रति
Then the blessed Lord, the master of the universe who rests upon Śeṣa, spoke: 'Tell me, free from anxiety, what is the cause of your fear?' Thereupon, they told the Lord of Śrī about the slaying of Tāraka.
तारकाद् भयम् आपन्नं भीषणं रोमहर्षणम् न युद्धैस् तपसा शापैर् हन्तुं नैव क्षमा वयम्
We are seized by a dreadful, hair-raising fear of Tāraka; neither by battle, austerity, nor curses are we able to slay him.