Shloka 14
Indratīrtha–Ādityatīrtha: Balarāma’s Ritual Bathing, Dāna, and Sacred-Historical Recollections
यथा स्थानानि दिव्यानि विबुधानां शुभानने । तपसा तानि प्राप्याणि तपोमूलं महत् सुखम्
yathā sthānāni divyāni vibudhānāṃ śubhānane | tapasā tāni prāpyāṇi tapomūlaṃ mahat sukham ||
Vaiśampāyana said: “O fair-faced one, just as the gods attain their radiant celestial abodes through austerity, so too are such stations won by tapas. Great happiness has austerity as its very root.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that lasting and “great” happiness is grounded in tapas—self-discipline and austerity—and that even exalted attainments (like celestial abodes) are achieved through such disciplined effort rather than mere wish or status.
Vaiśampāyana, in the course of recounting events, delivers a reflective statement praising tapas, using the gods’ attainment of celestial realms as an example to affirm that high goals and well-being are won through austerity.