Pulastya’s Tīrtha Enumeration: Sarasvatī, Naimiṣa, Gayā, and Associated Phalaśruti
Chapter 82
भरतश्रेष्ठ। वह धर्मारण्य कहलाता है, उसे परम पवित्र एवं आदितीर्थ माना गया है। उसमें प्रवेश करनेमात्रसे मनुष्य सब पापोंसे छुटकारा पा जाता है ।। अर्चयित्वा पितृन् देवान् नियतो नियताशन: । सर्वकामसमृद्धस्य यज्ञस्य फलमश्लुते,जो वहाँ नियमपूर्वक मिताहारी होकर देवता और पितरोंकी पूजा करता है, वह सम्पूर्ण कामनाओंसे सम्पन्न यज्ञका फल पाता है
bharataśreṣṭha, sa dharmāraṇya iti khyātaḥ; sa parama-pavitram ādītīrtham ca manyate. tasmin praviśya-mātreṇa manuṣyaḥ sarva-pāpebhyaḥ pramucyate. arcayitvā pitṝn devān niyato niyatāśanaḥ, sarva-kāma-samṛddhasya yajñasya phalam aśnute.
Oh, el mejor de los Bhāratas, aquel lugar es conocido como Dharmāraṇya. Se lo tiene por supremamente puro y por un vado sagrado primordial. Con sólo entrar en él, el hombre queda libre de todos los pecados. Y quien allí, disciplinado y moderado en el alimento, rinde culto a los dioses y a los antepasados, alcanza el fruto de un sacrificio completo, colmado de la realización de todos los fines justos.
घुलस्त्य उवाच
The verse teaches that sacred space (tīrtha) becomes ethically effective when approached with discipline: mere entry into Dharmāraṇya is said to cleanse sin, and regulated living—especially moderation in food—combined with honoring gods and ancestors yields merit comparable to a complete sacrifice. Purity is linked to restraint and reverence, not to extravagance.
A speaker describes the sanctity of a particular pilgrimage site, Dharmāraṇya, praising it as an ancient holy ford. The speaker explains the spiritual benefit of entering it and specifies the recommended conduct there—worship of devas and pitṛs with disciplined, moderate habits—promising the fruit of a fully accomplished yajña.