Shloka 14
सरस्वतीतीर्थानुक्रमः — बलरामस्य तीर्थयात्रा
Sarasvatī Tīrtha Itinerary — Balarāma’s Pilgrimage
अपूजयन् महाभागं यथास्य पितरं तथा । महान् सौभाग्यशाली और पुण्यात्मा सभी महर्षि भी महाभाग त्रितका उनके पिताके तुल्य ही सम्मान करते थे ।। कदाचिद्धि ततो राजन् भ्रातरावेकतद्वितौ,राजन्! एक दिनकी बात है, उनके दोनों भाई एकत और द्वित यज्ञ और धनके लिये चिन्ता करने लगे। शत्रुओंको संताप देनेवाले नरेश! उनके मनमें यह विचार उत्पन्न हुआ कि हमलोग त्रितको साथ लेकर यजमानोंका यज्ञ करावें और दक्षिणाके रूपमें बहुत-से पशु प्राप्त करके महान् फलदायक यज्ञका अनुष्ठान करें और उसीमें प्रसन्नतापूर्वक सोमरसका पान करें
vaiśampāyana uvāca | apūjayan mahābhāgaṃ yathāsya pitaraṃ tathā | mahān saubhāgyaśālī ca puṇyātmā ca tritā mahābhāgaḥ sarvair maharṣibhiḥ pituḥ samam eva pūjyata iti | kadācid dhi tato rājan bhrātarāv ekata-dvitau | yajñārthaṃ dhanārthaṃ ca cintayām āsatuḥ | teṣāṃ matiḥ samapadyata—tritaṃ saha nītvā yajamānānāṃ yajñān kārayāvaḥ, dakṣiṇārthaṃ bahūn paśūn prāpya mahāphalān yajñān anutiṣṭhāvaḥ, tatra ca somapānaṃ prītimanasaḥ kuryāma iti |
Vaiśampāyana said: The great-souled Trita—fortunate and virtuous—was honored by all the seers just as they honored his father. Then, O king, it happened one day that his two brothers, Ekata and Dvita, began to deliberate about sacrifice and wealth. A thought arose in them: “Let us take Trita with us and conduct sacrifices for patrons; receiving many cattle as sacrificial fees, we shall perform rites that yield great fruit, and there, with glad hearts, drink the Soma.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how outwardly sacred acts (yajña, Soma rites) can be pursued with mixed motives—honor and spiritual merit on one side, wealth and gain on the other—preparing a moral contrast between true virtue (Trita’s recognized righteousness) and potentially self-serving calculation.
Trita is widely revered like his father. His brothers Ekata and Dvita then plan to take him along to perform sacrifices for patrons, obtain many cattle as fees (dakṣiṇā), conduct highly rewarding rites, and enjoy Soma—introducing their scheme and the dynamics among the three brothers.