Shloka 47
Gautama–Śakra Saṃvāda: Karma, Loka-bheda, and the Restoration of the Elephant
गोमती कौशिकीं पम्पां महात्मानो धृतव्रता: । सरस्वतीदृषद्धत्यौ यमुनां ये तु यान्ति च
gomatīṁ kauśikīṁ pampāṁ mahātmāno dhṛtavratāḥ | sarasvatīdṛṣadvatyau yamunāṁ ye tu yānti ca
Dhṛtarāṣṭra said: “Those great-souled, steadfast men of firm vows who go on pilgrimage to the rivers Gomatī, Kauśikī, and Pampā—and also to Sarasvatī and Dṛṣadvatī, and to Yamunā as well—(attain the merit spoken of).”
धृतराष्ट उवाच
Educational Q&A
Steadfastness in vows (vrata) and reverent pilgrimage to sacred rivers are presented as dharmic disciplines that purify and generate spiritual merit (puṇya), emphasizing inner resolve alongside outward sacred travel.
In a tirtha-focused passage of the Anuśāsana Parva, Dhṛtarāṣṭra enumerates sacred waters—Gomatī, Kauśikī, Pampā, Sarasvatī, Dṛṣadvatī, and Yamunā—describing the conduct of great-souled vow-keepers who go to these places, as part of a broader discussion of pilgrimage and its fruits.