Shloka 83
Agastya–Lopāmudrā: Marriage, Austerity, and Conditions for Conjugal Union (लोमशकथितम्)
राजर्षिणा पुण्यकृता गयेनानुपमझ्ुते । अनुपम तेजस्वी जनमेजय! प्रयागसे चलकर पाण्डव पुण्यात्मा एवं धर्मज्ञ राजर्षि गयके द्वारा यज्ञ करके शुद्ध किये हुए उत्तम पर्वतसे उपलक्षित गयातीर्थमें गये
Vaiśaṃpāyana uvāca: Rājarṣiṇā puṇyakṛtā Gayenānupamadyute | Anupama-tejasvī Janamejaya, Prayāgāt calitvā Pāṇḍavāḥ puṇyātmānaṃ dharmajñaṃ rājarṣiṃ Gayam āśritya yajñena śuddhīkṛta-śailopetaṃ Gayātīrthaṃ jagmuḥ |
Vaiśaṃpāyana said: O Janamejaya of incomparable splendor, when the Pāṇḍavas set out from Prayāga, they went to the sacred ford of Gayā—distinguished by its excellent mountain—made holy and purified by the sacrificial rites of the righteous, dharma-knowing royal sage Gaya.
वैशग्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse presents tīrtha-yātrā and yajña as dharmic disciplines that purify both place and person. It highlights the ideal of a rājarṣi—royal power guided by righteousness—whose meritorious rites sanctify the world for others.
Vaiśaṃpāyana tells Janamejaya that the Pāṇḍavas, departing from Prayāga, proceed to the sacred site of Gayā, famed for its mountain and for having been purified by the sacrificial acts of the royal sage Gaya.