Shloka 120
युधिष्ठिरस्य अर्जुनप्रेषण-युक्तिवर्णनम् | Yudhiṣṭhira’s Rationale for Sending Arjuna and Request to Dhaumya
तत्र कोटिस्तु तीर्थानां विश्रुता भरतर्षभ । कूर्मरूपेण राजेन्द्र हासुरेण दुरात्मना
tatra koṭis tu tīrthānāṁ viśrutā bharatarṣabha | kūrmarūpeṇa rājendra hāsureṇa durātmanā | puṇḍarīkam avāpnoti viṣṇulokaṁ ca gacchati ||
Là, ô taureau parmi les Bharata, se trouve la célèbre tīrtha-koṭi, une multitude de gués sacrés. Ô roi, un Asura pervers nommé Hāsura, prenant la forme d’une tortue, s’en emparait et l’emportait. Voyant cela, le Seigneur Viṣṇu, tout-puissant, sauva et rétablit cet ensemble sacré. Ô Yudhiṣṭhira, il faut se baigner dans cette tīrtha-koṭi ; le pèlerin qui le fait obtient le mérite du sacrifice Puṇḍarīka et atteint le monde de Viṣṇu.
घुलस्त्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
Sacred places and righteous practices (like bathing at a tīrtha) are protected by divine order; sincere pilgrimage performed with faith yields great merit, comparable to major sacrifices, and leads toward higher spiritual destinations (here, Viṣṇuloka).
A notorious Asura named Hāsura, disguised as a tortoise, was stealing or dragging away a renowned cluster of pilgrimage sites; Viṣṇu intervenes to restore it, and the speaker instructs Yudhiṣṭhira that bathing there grants the merit of the Puṇḍarīka sacrifice and leads to Viṣṇu’s abode.