Uttara-khaṇḍa · Chapter 24
Sourceमहादेवउवाच- प्रयागतीर्थमाहात्म्यं प्रवक्ष्यामि यथा श्रुतम् । महादानपराः पुण्यकर्माणो यत्र संति हि १। यत्र गंगा च यमुना यत्र चैव सरस्वती । तं देवतीर्थप्रवरं देवानामपि दुर्लभम् २। ईदृशं त्रिषु लोकेषु भूतं न च भविष्यति । ग्रहाणां च यथा सूर्यो नक्षत्राणां यथा शशी ३। तीर्थानामुत्तमं तीर्थं प्रयागाख्यमनुत्तमम् । प्रातःकाले तु भो विद्वन्प्रयागे स्नानमाचरेत् ४। महापापाद्विनिर्मुक्तः स याति परमं पदम् । देयं किंचिद्यथाशक्ति दारिद्र्याभावमिच्छता ५। यो नरस्तत्र गत्वा वै प्रयागे स्नानमाचरेत् । धनिको दीर्घजीवी च जायते नात्र संशयः ६। यत्र वटस्याक्षयस्य दर्शनं कुरुते नरः । तेन दर्शनमात्रेण ब्रह्महत्या विनश्यति ७। स चाक्षयवटः ख्यातः कल्पांतेपि च दृश्यते । शेते विष्णुर्यस्य पत्रे अतोयमव्ययः स्मृतः ८। तत्र पूजां प्रकुर्वंति मानवा विष्णुवल्लभाः । सूत्रेणाच्छादितं कृत्वा पूजां चैव तु कारयेत् ९। माधवाख्यस्तत्र देवः सुखं तिष्ठति नित्यशः । तस्य वै दर्शनं कार्यं महापापैः प्रमुच्यते १०। यत्र देवाश्च ऋषयो मनुष्याश्चापि सर्वशः । स्वस्वस्थानं समाश्रित्य तत्र तिष्ठंति नित्यशः ११। गोघ्नो वापि च चांडालो दुष्टो वा दुष्टचेतनः । बालघाती तथाऽविद्वान्म्रियते तत्र वै तदा १२। स वै चतुर्भुजो भूत्वा वैकुंठे वसते चिरम् । प्रयागे तु नरो यस्तु माघस्नानं करोति च १३। न तस्य फलसंख्यास्ति शृणु देवर्षिसत्तम । आपो नारा इति प्रोक्ता सर्वलोकेषु शुश्रुम १४। तेन नारायणः प्रोक्तः स्नातानां भुक्तिमुक्तिदः । ग्रहाणां च यथा सूर्यो नक्षत्राणां यथा शशी १५। मासानां हि तथा माघः श्रेष्ठः सर्वेषु कर्मसु । मकरस्थे रवौ माघे प्रातःकाले तथामले १६। गोःपदेऽपि जले स्नानं स्वर्गदं पापिनामपि । योगोऽयं दुर्लभो विद्वन्त्रैलोक्ये सचराचरे १७। अस्मिन्यो यत्नमापन्नः स्नायादपि दिनत्रयम् । पंच वा सप्त वाप्यत्र स्नानं कुर्वन्प्रयागजम् १८। चंद्रवद्वर्द्धते सोऽपि कुले वाडवसत्तम । चराचराश्च ये जीवास्तथैव मनुजादयः १९। प्रयागं तीर्थमाश्रित्य वैकुंठं यांति तेऽचिरात् । ये वसिष्ठादयस्तत्र ऋषयः सनकादयः २०। तेऽपि प्रयागजं तीर्थं सेवंते च पुनःपुनः । यत्र विष्णुश्च रुद्रश्च यत्रेंद्रश्च तथा पुनः २१। तेऽपि सर्वे वसंतीह प्रयागे तीर्थसत्तमे । दानं तत्र प्रशंसंति नियमांश्च तथैव च २२। तत्र स्नात्वा च पीत्वा च पुनर्जन्म न विद्यते २३। इति श्रीपाद्मे महापुराणे पंचपंचाशत्सहस्रसंहितायां उत्तरखण्डे उमापतिनारदसंवादे प्रयागमाहात्म्ये चतुर्विंशोऽध्यायः २४।
mahādevauvāca- prayāgatīrthamāhātmyaṃ pravakṣyāmi yathā śrutam | mahādānaparāḥ puṇyakarmāṇo yatra saṃti hi 1| yatra gaṃgā ca yamunā yatra caiva sarasvatī | taṃ devatīrthapravaraṃ devānāmapi durlabham 2| īdṛśaṃ triṣu lokeṣu bhūtaṃ na ca bhaviṣyati | grahāṇāṃ ca yathā sūryo nakṣatrāṇāṃ yathā śaśī 3| tīrthānāmuttamaṃ tīrthaṃ prayāgākhyamanuttamam | prātaḥkāle tu bho vidvanprayāge snānamācaret 4| mahāpāpādvinirmuktaḥ sa yāti paramaṃ padam | deyaṃ kiṃcidyathāśakti dāridryābhāvamicchatā 5| yo narastatra gatvā vai prayāge snānamācaret | dhaniko dīrghajīvī ca jāyate nātra saṃśayaḥ 6| yatra vaṭasyākṣayasya darśanaṃ kurute naraḥ | tena darśanamātreṇa brahmahatyā vinaśyati 7| sa cākṣayavaṭaḥ khyātaḥ kalpāṃtepi ca dṛśyate | śete viṣṇuryasya patre atoyamavyayaḥ smṛtaḥ 8| tatra pūjāṃ prakurvaṃti mānavā viṣṇuvallabhāḥ | sūtreṇācchāditaṃ kṛtvā pūjāṃ caiva tu kārayet 9| mādhavākhyastatra devaḥ sukhaṃ tiṣṭhati nityaśaḥ | tasya vai darśanaṃ kāryaṃ mahāpāpaiḥ pramucyate 10| yatra devāśca ṛṣayo manuṣyāścāpi sarvaśaḥ | svasvasthānaṃ samāśritya tatra tiṣṭhaṃti nityaśaḥ 11| goghno vāpi ca cāṃḍālo duṣṭo vā duṣṭacetanaḥ | bālaghātī tathā'vidvānmriyate tatra vai tadā 12| sa vai caturbhujo bhūtvā vaikuṃṭhe vasate ciram | prayāge tu naro yastu māghasnānaṃ karoti ca 13| na tasya phalasaṃkhyāsti śṛṇu devarṣisattama | āpo nārā iti proktā sarvalokeṣu śuśruma 14| tena nārāyaṇaḥ proktaḥ snātānāṃ bhuktimuktidaḥ | grahāṇāṃ ca yathā sūryo nakṣatrāṇāṃ yathā śaśī 15| māsānāṃ hi tathā māghaḥ śreṣṭhaḥ sarveṣu karmasu | makarasthe ravau māghe prātaḥkāle tathāmale 16| goḥpade'pi jale snānaṃ svargadaṃ pāpināmapi | yogo'yaṃ durlabho vidvantrailokye sacarācare 17| asminyo yatnamāpannaḥ snāyādapi dinatrayam | paṃca vā sapta vāpyatra snānaṃ kurvanprayāgajam 18| caṃdravadvarddhate so'pi kule vāḍavasattama | carācarāśca ye jīvāstathaiva manujādayaḥ 19| prayāgaṃ tīrthamāśritya vaikuṃṭhaṃ yāṃti te'cirāt | ye vasiṣṭhādayastatra ṛṣayaḥ sanakādayaḥ 20| te'pi prayāgajaṃ tīrthaṃ sevaṃte ca punaḥpunaḥ | yatra viṣṇuśca rudraśca yatreṃdraśca tathā punaḥ 21| te'pi sarve vasaṃtīha prayāge tīrthasattame | dānaṃ tatra praśaṃsaṃti niyamāṃśca tathaiva ca 22| tatra snātvā ca pītvā ca punarjanma na vidyate 23| iti śrīpādme mahāpurāṇe paṃcapaṃcāśatsahasrasaṃhitāyāṃ uttarakhaṇḍe umāpatināradasaṃvāde prayāgamāhātmye caturviṃśo'dhyāyaḥ 24|
English translation
Mahādeva said :
1-8a. I shall tell you, as I have heard, the greatness of Prayāga where live people who are intent upon giving large gifts and practise meritorious acts. That holy place (called Prayāga) where (i.e. by which) Gaṅgā , Yamunā and Sarasvatī are (flowing) is the best and is inaccessible even to gods. Such (a holy place) was never there (in the past) nor will be there (in the future). The excellent, holy place called Prayāga is best among all the holy places as the Sun is among the planets or the Moon among the stars. O learned one, he who would bathe in the morning at Prayāga, is free from great sins, and goes to the highest position. A man desiring absence of poverty should give something (to a brāhmaṇa at Prayāga). There is no doubt that a man who after going would bathe there, becomes rich and lives a long life. A man who sees the undecaying fig-tree there, (his sin due to his having committed) the murder of a brāhmaṇa perishes. That fig-tree is called Akṣaya-vaṭa and is (i.e. will be) seen even at the end of the kalpa .
8b-13. Since Viṣṇu lies on its leaf, it is known to be immutable. Men dear to Viṣṇu, worship (the lord) there. A man should get it worshipped (i.e. should worship it) after having covered it with a thread. The god called Mādhava (i.e. Viṣṇu) always stays there happily. One should see (the image of) him. One then is freed from great sins. Gods, sages, and men having resorted to their own places, always stay there everywhere. A man who has killed a cow, or who is a cāṇḍāla , who is wicked or of a wicked mind, or who has murdered a child, so also who is not learned, dying there becomes one having four hands and lives in Vaikuṇṭha for a long time.
14-19a. O best among the divine sages, listen. A man who bathes at Prayāga during the month of Māgha , has no (limit to the) number of fruits (that he obtains). We hear that āpaḥ (i.e. waters) is said to be nārāḥ (i.e. waters— āpaḥ and nārāḥ are synonyms) in the entire world. Therefore, he is called Nārāyaṇa . He gives pleasures and salvation to those who have bathed there. As the Sun is best among the planets, the Moon among the stars, similarly Māgha is the best in (i.e. for) all acts. When in Māgha the Sun is in the Capricornus sign, a bath in the morning, even in the clear water of a very small puddle, gives heaven even to the sinners. O learned one, such an opportunity is rare in the three worlds with the mobile and the immobile. He too who has made an effort (to bathe) here at Prayāga and would bathe (every day) for three days or five or seven days would grow like the Moon in his family, O best brāhmaṇa.
19b-23. The mobile and immobile living beings, so also human beings and others, go soon to Vaikuṇṭha after having resorted to the holy place of Prayāga. Those sages like Vasiṣṭha and like Sanaka also repeatedly resort to the holy place of Prayāga. There, in the excellent holy place of Prayāga, all (gods like) Viṣṇu, Rudra and Indra live. They recommend giving gifts here, so also observing restraints. After having bathed there and drunk (water) there, there is no rebirth.
Complete chapter-aligned witnesses. Sanskrit Wikisource page 44609, revision 336290 (2022-04-21T04:49:33Z). English is N. A. Deshpande’s complete translation, controlled against its chapter page at https://www.wisdomlib.org/hinduism/book/the-padma-purana/d/doc365455.html and the ten-volume archival witness. The witnesses are aligned at chapter level; no unsupported verse-by-verse equivalence is asserted.