इष्टाश्च विविधा यज्ञाः कोशसर्वस्वदक्षिणाः । सरित्सरांसि स्नातानि यानि पूज्यानि भूतले । निषेवितानि सर्वाणि क्षेत्राणि भ्रमता मया
iṣṭāśca vividhā yajñāḥ kośasarvasvadakṣiṇāḥ | saritsarāṃsi snātāni yāni pūjyāni bhūtale | niṣevitāni sarvāṇi kṣetrāṇi bhramatā mayā
„Ich habe mancherlei Opfer vollzogen und als Dakṣiṇā meine Schatzkammer und all meinen Reichtum gegeben. Ich habe in den verehrungswürdigen Flüssen und Seen der Erde gebadet. Umherwandernd habe ich alle heiligen Stätten aufgesucht und ihnen gedient — und doch finde ich keine Erlösung.“
King (unnamed in the snippet)
Scene: A montage-like vision: sacrificial fires with priests receiving vast dakṣiṇā; the king bathing in rivers and lakes; walking through multiple sacred regions—ending with him still burdened, returning to the sage in despair.
Even vast ritual merit—yajña, dāna, and tīrtha-yātrā—may not remove a specific grave sin without the precise dharmic remedy taught by realized sages.
The verse praises tīrthas in general—revered rivers, lakes, and sacred kṣetras—without naming a single location.
Performance of various yajñas with generous dakṣiṇā, and tīrtha-snān (bathing in sacred rivers and lakes) as pilgrimage practices.