Shloka 18
Sārasvata–Dadhīca Upākhyāna at Sarasvatī Tīrtha
Balarāma’s Pilgrimage Context
स््नात्वा समुद्रे विधिवच्छुचिर्जप्पं जजाप सः । कृतजप्याद्विक: श्रीमानाश्रमं च जगाम ह
snātvā samudre vidhivac chucir jappaṃ jajāpa saḥ | kṛtajapyādvikaḥ śrīmān āśramaṃ ca jagāma ha ||
Nachdem er im Ozean nach rechter Vorschrift gebadet und sich gereinigt hatte, sprach er das vorgeschriebene Mantra-Japa. Als er Japa und die begleitenden Observanzen ordnungsgemäß vollendet hatte, begab sich der Ruhmreiche zur Einsiedelei (āśrama)—ein Zeichen der Rückkehr vom äußeren Tun zu einer disziplinierten, innerlich gelenkten Lebensführung.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores dharmic discipline: purification (snāna) performed according to rule (vidhivat) should be followed by inner practice (japa). Ethical steadiness is shown by completing one’s prescribed observances and then returning to a life of restraint and duty (āśrama).
Vaiśampāyana narrates that the (unnamed) illustrious person bathes in the ocean in the proper ritual manner, performs mantra-recitation (japa) to completion, and then goes to a hermitage—marking a transition from a purificatory rite to settled religious observance.