Shloka 96
Saptasārasvata-tīrtha-prasaṅgaḥ | The Saptasārasvata Pilgrimage Account and the Maṅkaṇaka Narrative
गन्धर्वाणां ततस्तीर्थमागच्छद् रोहिणीसुत: । बलरामजीने वहाँ स्नान करके ब्राह्मणोंको धन दान किया और दिव्य गीत एवं दिव्य वाद्योंकी ध्वनि सुनकर देवताओं, गन्धर्वों तथा राक्षसोंकी बहुत-सी मूर्तियोंका दर्शन किया। तत्पश्चात् रोहिणीनन्दन बलराम गन्धर्वतीर्थमें गये
gandharvāṇāṃ tatas tīrtham āgacchad rohiṇīsutaḥ |
Vaiśampāyana said: Thereafter, Rohiṇī’s son (Balarāma) came to the sacred ford associated with the Gandharvas. Having bathed there, he honored the brāhmaṇas with gifts of wealth; and, hearing celestial songs and the sound of divine instruments, he beheld many wondrous forms connected with the gods, Gandharvas, and Rākṣasas. Then Rohiṇīnandana Balarāma proceeded onward to the Gandharva-tīrtha.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights tīrtha-yātrā as a discipline of purification and merit: bathing at sacred places, giving dāna to brāhmaṇas, and cultivating reverence that opens one to auspicious ‘darśana’—a moral emphasis on generosity, humility, and sacred attentiveness.
Balarāma, on pilgrimage during the events of the war period, arrives at a Gandharva-associated sacred ford, bathes, gives wealth in charity to brāhmaṇas, experiences celestial music, beholds wondrous forms linked to devas, Gandharvas, and Rākṣasas, and then proceeds to the Gandharva-tīrtha.