Skandapurana 2.1.38
English (machine translation) 2.1.38
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Now, the manifestation of the Lord, pleased with the austerity of Agastya, Śaṅkha, and others.
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Bharadvāja said:
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For them whose minds were fixed upon Hari, the Lord of the universe,
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devoted wholly to worship and praise, three days passed there. / (1)
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When the third day arrived, they all fell asleep at night,
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and at the end of the fourth watch they saw an excellent dream. / (2)
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Puruṣottama, holding conch, discus, and mace in hand, gracious,
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arrived to grant a boon, with smiling eyes, they beheld. / (3)
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Rising with joyful hearts and coming forth from their dwelling,
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they bathed duly and with devotion in the pure waters of Svāmipuṣkariṇī. / (4)
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Having duly performed every rite appropriate for daybreak,
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they returned to their dwelling to worship the god Acyuta. / (5)
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On the way, an omen indicated by birds that brought immediate blessing,
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they saw, and considered the grace of the god already within their hands. / (6)
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Then, having worshipped Janārdana, the maker of the three worlds,
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they praised him with various holy hymns proclaimed in the Vedas. / (7)
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At the conclusion of the praise, O son of Kuntī, the chief of sages born from a pot,
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together with Śaṅkha, chanted the eight-syllabled mantra of Hari. / (8)
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While their minds were thus offered to Acyuta, the Lord of the world,
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before them appeared a single, wondrously great light, / (9)
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as if a mass of radiance of many crores of suns, moons, and fires
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had united and stood in the vault of heaven. / (10)
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Beholding that light, all of them, moved by boundless wonder,
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meditated on divine Nārāyaṇa, whose form is supreme bliss, / (11)
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beyond the path of speech and mind, radiant with renowned sovereign power,
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having a thousand eyes, endowed with thousands of arms and feet, / (12)
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delightful with flashing splendour like molten gold,
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terrifying with fangs, difficult to look upon, spewing masses of fire, / (13)
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resplendent with the Kaustubha jewel, bearing Śrī upon his chest,
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inconceivable, without beginning or end, inspiring immense terror, / (14)
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illuminating the entire universe within himself, all-pervading.
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Those [sages] headed by Agastya and Śaṅkha, with joyful hearts, / (15)
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seeing that Lord of the universe, bowed down again and again.
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Then the weapons of Hari, roaming for the protection of the worlds, / (16)
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endowed with their own brilliance and strength, came to attend upon him:
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the discus shining like the sun, the divine mace, the sword Nandaka, / (17)
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the lotus, and Pāñcajanya of terrible sound, lustrous like the moon.
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Then, overwhelmingly, it filled the entire cosmic egg— / (18)
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the roar of Pāñcajanya, terrifying to all asuras.
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Hearing the sound of Pāñcajanya, exceedingly wondrous and dreadful, / (19)
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All the deities arrived, each mounted upon their own vehicle:
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Brahmā, Rudra, Śatamakha, and Sanaka and the other yogins,
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the sages headed by Vasiṣṭha, gandharvas, uragas, and kinnaras,
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Viṣvaksena, Garuḍa, and Viṣṇu's attendants headed by Jaya,
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and those eternal beings of equal form who dwell in Śvetadvīpa.
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A wondrous rain of blossoms, born from celestial trees,
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fell, delighting all minds with its dense fragrance.
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Celestial fair-eyed women danced, foremost kinnaras sang,
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and gods, gandharvas, and cāraṇas, trembling with joy, sang praises.
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Seeing the lotus-eyed Lord gracious and affectionate to his devotees,
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they bowed down with eight-limbed prostrations and gratified him with various hymns of praise.
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Brahmā and the others said:
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Victory to you, Viṣṇu, ocean of mercy! Victory, O lotus-eyed one!
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Victory, sole granter of boons to the worlds! Victory, destroyer of the distress of devotees!
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Endless, imperishable, tranquil, beyond the range of speech and mind—
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who indeed knows you, whose nature consists of consciousness and bliss?
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Subtler than the subtle, grosser than the gross, dwelling within all,
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they declare you to be the infallible Person beyond material nature.
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You whose nature is the essence of Vedānta, who exist inside and outside everything—
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who indeed among embodied beings subjected to illusion is capable of describing you?
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Having seen this form of yours that strikes great terror,
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we are all agitated with fear; please assume a peaceful form!
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Bharadvāja said:
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Thus praised by Viriñci and the others, the Garuḍa-bannered Lord was pleased
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and with a voice like the rumbling of a cloud respectfully said:
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Now, the manner in which the Lord assumed a gentle form at the request of Brahmā and the others.
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The Blessed Lord said:
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Relinquishing this terrifying form, I shall assume
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a peaceful form that brings delight; look upon me, free from agitation!
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Having spoken thus, having disappeared at that very moment,
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he became pleasant to behold within an aerial chariot inlaid with gems.
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His face like the orb of the moon, tranquil, with the luster of a blue lotus petal,
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clad in golden-hued garments, adorned with jeweled ornaments,
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his four hands shining with the conch, discus, mace, and lotus.
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Beholding him, the beloved of Ramā, they bowed again and again.
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Having satisfied Brahmā and the others by granting their desired wishes,
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he spoke to Agastya, the foremost among sages, who was bowed with modesty:
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The Blessed Lord said:
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O best of sages, through severe vows performed toward me just now,
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you are exhausted; I will grant you your desired boons, speak!
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Bharadvāja said:
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Hearing the words of Śrī's husband and bowing again and again,
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the pot-born sage, with all his limbs thrilled with horripilation, spoke these words:
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Now, the river Svarṇamukharī's attainment of supremacy over all, like the Lord himself, at the request of Agastya.
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Agastya said:
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Whatever has been offered in sacrifice, whatever austerity performed, whatever studied, whatever heard by me,
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all that has borne fruit, since I have been honored by you.
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I alone am truly righteous in all the three worlds, O Lord,
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in that you have come in search of me who was now searching for you!
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By your grace, all my desires were attained long ago;
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even upon reflection, I see nothing to be attained now, O Mādhava.
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Nevertheless, out of fickleness, this is petitioned of you, O Lord:
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make my devotion to your lotus feet constantly like this!
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And consider this: at the request of the gods, by me
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the river Suvarṇamukharī, which destroys a multitude of sins of those who bathe in it,
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has arrived near the slopes of your mountain;
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make her fulfilled, O Lord of the worlds, by your gracious favors!
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Having bathed in the waters of the Suvarṇamukharī, those who behold [you]
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standing on Veṅkaṭa—may they become vessels of enjoyment and liberation!
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Short-lived men are foolish and fallen away from the yoga of knowledge;
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[Short-lived, foolish men, fallen away from knowledge and yoga,] / cannot see you by rites of vows and study. (46)
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Always abiding on this mountain, O Teacher of the Universe,
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graciously disposed to all, O God, become the granter of desired ends! (47)
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The Blessed Lord said:
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What has been prayed for by you, O brahmin, that shall indeed be so;
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truly, incomparable devotion to me has been offered by you in this world. (48)
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Like the Jāhnavī, this river Suvarṇamukharī, O sage,
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shall be longed for by the gods, bestowing desired fortune. (49)
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And this Svāmipuṣkariṇī, endowed with bodily form as a river,
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shall enter into that divine river, the resort of a multitude of tīrthas. (50)
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On this mountain named Vaikuṇṭha, from this day forth, forever,
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I shall dwell, O sage, by your prayer. (51)
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Those who have washed away the mire of masses of sins by bathing in the Suvarṇamukharī,
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and with composed minds behold me on this Vaikuṇṭha mountain— (52)
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endowed with sons and other blessings on earth, possessing all sovereign power,
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and after dying and enjoying pleasures in heaven until the end of the kalpa, (53)
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free from rebirth, shining with pure bliss,
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they shall reach my abode; no doubt should be entertained here. (54)
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Welcoming all who come to see me with auspicious desires,
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I shall constantly fulfill them, O sage, out of respect for your word. (55)
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To those desiring sons, [I shall give] many sons; and wealth to those desiring wealth;
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likewise, to those desiring health, a great relief from disease; (56)
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likewise, the warding off of calamity for those overwhelmed by fierce misfortunes:
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I will always bestow desired pleasures, even those difficult to attain. (57)
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Whatever desires people hope for as they come here and behold me,
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all of them obtain those very desires; of this there is no doubt. (58)
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Or stationed wherever they may be, the best of men who remember me—
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they all attain their desired perfection through my grace. (59)
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Now, the disappearance of the Blessed Lord after granting a boon to King Śaṅkha.
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Bharadvāja said:
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Having spoken thus to that sage, the God, looking at King Śaṅkha,
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spoke this word while Brahmā and the foremost [gods] listened: (60)
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The Blessed Lord said:
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I am pleased by your devotion, O Śaṅkha! Choose a desired boon;
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I, the giver of boons, give [it] to you who are emaciated and performing tapas. (61)
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Śaṅkha said:
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I ask for nothing else, O mighty-armed one, than service to your lotus feet;
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the supreme state which your devotees attain, that I ask for! (62)
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The Blessed Lord said:
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What has been prayed for by you, O Śaṅkha, that shall indeed be so;
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what is unobtainable for those suited to the practice of my service? (63)
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Staying in Indra's world until the end of the kalpa, served by hosts of apsarases,
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and enjoying various pleasures, you shall then go to my realm. (64)
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Thus he granted desired boons to Śaṅkha, O lord of the earth—
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Nārāyaṇa, the origin of the universe, a wish-fulfilling tree to those who worship him. (65)
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Then, dismissing all [the deities] headed by Brahmā, the lotus-eyed
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Lord, praised with devotion by those who meditate on him, vanished right there. (66)
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Now, the conclusion of the māhātmya of sacred Veṅkaṭācala as described by Bharadvāja.
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Bharadvāja said:
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This greatness of Mount Veṅkaṭa has been told to you, O Arjuna;
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men are freed from sins having heard this purifying story. (67)
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Relinquishing the form of the Boar when requested by Brahmā, Hari
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rejoiced here in a wondrous form, deluding the world with his māyā. (68)
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Afterward, petitioned by Agastya and Śaṅkha, he whose sight brings joy
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granted his exceedingly handsome, tranquil body of delight. (69)
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Remembering Nārāyaṇa, Mount Veṅkaṭa, and the Svāmipuṣkariṇī,
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and this narration, people are freed from grave sins. (70)
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There is no place in the universe equal to Mount Veṅkaṭa;
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no god equal to the Lord of Veṅkaṭa has existed or ever will exist. (71)
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A place equal to Mount Veṅkaṭa has not existed, nor ever will exist.
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And there is nowhere anything equal to the pool of the Svāmitīrtha.
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Those who, having risen in the morning, constantly remember Veṅkaṭeśa—
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the fortune of liberation is placed in their hands; no doubt should be entertained here.
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Or those self-controlled ones who, having bathed in the sacred ford of the Svāmipuṣkariṇī,
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behold Hari, the soul of all, dwelling on Mount Varāha—
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they obtain the complete fruit
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of a thousand Aśvamedhas and a hundred Vājapeyas; no doubt should be entertained here.
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Those best of men who hear the Veṅkaṭācalamāhātmya
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attain liberation and worldly enjoyment, both in this world and in the next.
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The Veṅkaṭācalamāhātmya has been related in brief to you.
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Next, O Arjuna, the power of the great river is related.
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Thus ends the thirty-eighth chapter, entitled “Description of the Greatness of the Manifestation of Śrī Veṅkaṭeśa Pleased by the Austerity of Agastya, Śaṅkha, and Others, in the Praise of the Greatness of the Suvarṇamukharī,” in the Śrīveṅkaṭācalamāhātmya of the second [section], the Vaiṣṇavakhaṇḍa, in the Skandamahāpurāṇa consisting of eighty-one thousand verses.
Linked texts (1)
- Skandapurāṇa — Vyāsa, Sanskrit