Shloka 65
Tīrtha-Māhātmya of the Sarasvatī Region and the Praise of Kurukṣetra
Pilgrimage Merits
पावनं तीर्थमासाद्य तर्पयेत्पितृदेवताः । अग्निष्टोमस्य यज्ञस्य फलमाप्नोति भारत
pāvanaṃ tīrthamāsādya tarpayetpitṛdevatāḥ | agniṣṭomasya yajñasya phalamāpnoti bhārata
O Bhārata, having reached a purifying tīrtha, one should offer tarpaṇa—libations—to the ancestral deities; thereby one attains the merit of the Agniṣṭoma sacrifice.
Unspecified (narratorial instruction addressing 'Bhārata')
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
Type: tirtha
Sandhi Resolution Notes: तीर्थमासाद्य = तीर्थम् + आसाद्य; तर्पयेत्पितृदेवताः = तर्पयेत् + पितृदेवताः (त् + प → त्प); फलमाप्नोति = फलम् + आप्नोति (म् + आ → मा).
FAQs
The verse recommends performing pitṛ-tarpaṇa—offering libations to the ancestral deities—upon reaching a purifying sacred place (tīrtha).
It states that the practitioner gains the fruit (phala) of the Agniṣṭoma sacrifice, a major Vedic soma-yajña, indicating very high ritual merit.
It emphasizes gratitude and duty toward one’s ancestors (pitṛ-ṛṇa) and presents tīrtha-based acts of reverence as spiritually potent, sometimes equated with large-scale sacrificial rites.