Srimad Bhagavatam — Tritiya Skandha, Shloka 23
Kardama Muni’s Mystic Opulence, Devahūti’s Rejuvenation, and the Turning Toward Fearlessness
निमज्ज्यास्मिन् हृदे भीरु विमानमिदमारुह । इदं शुक्लकृतं तीर्थमाशिषां यापकं नृणाम् ॥ २३ ॥
nimajjyāsmin hrade bhīru vimānam idam āruha idaṁ śukla-kṛtaṁ tīrtham āśiṣāṁ yāpakaṁ nṛṇām
My dear Devahūti, you look very much afraid. First bathe in Lake Bindu-sarovara, created by Lord Viṣṇu Himself, which can grant all the desires of a human being, and then mount this airplane.
It is still the system to go to places of pilgrimage and take a bath in the water there. In Vṛndāvana the people take baths in the river Yamunā. In other places, such as Prayāga, they take baths in the river Ganges. The words tīrtham āśiṣāṁ yāpakam refer to the fulfillment of desires by bathing in a place of pilgrimage. Kardama Muni advised his good wife to bathe in Lake Bindu-sarovara so that she could revive the former beauty and luster of her body.
FAQs
This verse describes a sacred lake (hṛda) as a tīrtha that can grant the blessings people seek, emphasizing purification and divine favor connected with holy places.
In the narrative, Kardama is arranging Devahuti’s purification and transformation before divine travel—immersion signifies cleansing and auspicious preparation for the next elevated experience.
Seek inner purification (through sincere sādhana like japa, prayer, and sattvic living) and approach sacred practices with faith, understanding that purity of heart is the gateway to higher spiritual progress.