Tīrtha
Tīrtha · tīrtha, “ford, holy bathing place”
Grammar: neuter noun, from the root tṝ (to cross over): “a ford, a place of crossing”.
Meaning: a holy bathing place, on a river or a lake, where one bathes for purity; and by extension any holy place or holy person who helps one cross saṃsāra.
In the scriptures: the Bhāgavata Purāṇa uses the word in these places.
Śuka tells Parīkshit that the eyes of men who do not see the mūrti of Śrī Hari and the tīrthas and the like that remind of him are as useless as the eyes on peacock feathers (Bhāgavata Purāṇa, Skandha 2, Chapter 3). Brahmā tells Nārada that from the ears of the Purusha came the directions and the tīrthas (Bhāgavata Purāṇa, Skandha 2, Chapter 6).
When Śrī Kṛshṇa visited Akrūra‘s house, he said: “Tīrthas are not only places made of water, and devatās are not only those made of clay and stone. The good too are tīrthas and devatās. Tīrthas and devatās purify after they have been served, but the mere darśana of the good purifies a man” (Bhāgavata Purāṇa, Skandha 10, Chapter 48).
Related terms: Kshetra · Snāna · Tīrtha-yātrā · Deva-tīrtha
Sources
- Bhāgavata Purāṇa, Skandha 2, Chapters 3, 6; Skandha 10, Chapter 48