Shloka 1
आदि पर्व — खाण्डवदाह प्रसङ्गः: पावकस्य याचनं तथा इन्द्रवर्षनिवारणोपायः
Adi Parva — Khāṇḍava episode: Agni’s request and the means to resist Indra’s rain
अत---कात पजञ्चदर्शाधिकद्विशततमो< ध्याय: अर्जुनके द्वारा वर्गा अप्सराका ग्राहयोनिसे उद्धार तथा वर्गाकी आत्मकथाका आरम्भ वैशम्पायन उवाच ततः समुद्रे तीर्थानि दक्षिणे भरतर्षभ । अभ्यगच्छत् सुपुण्यानि शोभितानि तपस्विभि:,वैशम्पायनजी कहते हैं--भरतश्रेष्ठ] तदनन्तर अर्जुन दक्षिण समुद्रके तटपर तपस्वीजनोंसे सुशोभित परम पुण्यमय तीर्थोंमें गये
Vaiśampāyana uvāca: tataḥ samudre tīrthāni dakṣiṇe bharatarṣabha | abhyagacchat supuṇyāni śobhitāni tapasvibhiḥ ||
Vaiśampāyana said: “Then, O bull among the Bharatas, Arjuna went to the sacred fords along the southern sea—places of great merit, made resplendent by ascetics.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Sacredness is associated with dharmic practice: tīrthas become especially meritorious when inhabited and sanctified by tapasvins. The verse implies that ethical-spiritual refinement can be pursued through pilgrimage and contact with disciplined sages.
Vaiśampāyana narrates that Arjuna proceeds to the holy pilgrimage sites along the southern ocean, described as highly meritorious and beautified by ascetics—marking a transition into a tīrtha-journey episode.