“Pulastya said, ‘Then, O great king, one should proceed to the excellent tirtha of Dharma, where the illustrious god of justice had practised highly meritorious austerities. And it is for this that he made the spot a sacred tirtha and rendered it celebrated by his own name. Bathing there, O king, a virtuous man with concentrated soul certainly sanctifieth his family to the seventh generation. One should then repair, O king, to the excellent Jnanapavana. Sojourning thither, one obtaineth the merit of the Agnishtoma sacrifice, and goeth to the region of the Munis. Then, O monarch, a man should repair to the Saugandhika-vana. There dwell the celestials with Brahma at their head, Rishis endued with wealth of asceticism, the Siddhas, the Charanas, the Gandharvas, the Kinnaras and the serpents. As soon as one entereth these woods, he is cleansed of all his sins. Then, O king, should one repair to the sacred goddess Saraswati, known there as the goddess Plaksha, that best of streams and foremost of rivers. There should one bathe in the water issuing from an ant-hill. (Bathing there and) worshipping the Pitris and the gods, one obtaineth the merit of the horse-sacrifice. There existeth a rare tirtha called Isanadhyushita, lying from the ant-hill at the distance of six throws of a heavy stick. As seen in the Puranas, O tiger among men, bathing there a man obtaineth the merit of giving away a thousand Kapila kine and of the horse-sacrifice. Journeying next, O foremost of men, to Sugandha, and Satakumbha and Panchayaksha, a man becometh adored in heaven. Repairing to another tirtha there called Trisulakhata, one should bathe and set himself to worship the Pitris and the gods. Doing so, without doubt, one obtaineth, after death, the status of Ganapatya. One should next proceed, O king, to the excellent spot of the Goddess celebrated over the three worlds by the name of Sakamvari.Mbh 3.84.1a · Mahabharata · VANA PARVA
Mbh 3.84.1a
Mahabharata · translated by Kisari Mohan Ganguli
Themes in this passage
LeadershipDharmaThe DivineWorshipCharityDeathDoubtFamily
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