Shloka 80
युधिष्ठिरस्य अर्जुनप्रेषण-युक्तिवर्णनम् | Yudhiṣṭhira’s Rationale for Sending Arjuna and Request to Dhaumya
मार्कण्डेयस्य राजेन्द्र तीर्थमासाद्य दुर्लभम्
mārkaṇḍeyasya rājendra tīrtham āsādya durlabham | rājendra gomatyāḥ gaṅgāyāś ca lokavikhyāta-saṅgamasya samīpe mārkaṇḍeyajī-kṛtaṃ durlabhaṃ tīrtham asti | tatra gatvā manuṣyo 'gniṣṭoma-yajñasya phalaṃ prāpnoti sva-kulasya ca uddhāraṃ karoti |
Ghūlastya dit : «Ô roi, il existe un gué sacré rare, lié au sage Mārkaṇḍeya. Près de la confluence, renommée dans le monde, de la Gomati et de la Gaṅgā, se trouve ce tīrtha du rishi, difficile à atteindre. En s’y rendant, l’homme obtient le mérite du sacrifice Agniṣṭoma et devient cause de l’élévation de sa propre lignée.»
घुलस्त्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
Pilgrimage to a sanctified place connected with a great ṛṣi is presented as a dharmic act whose merit can equal major Vedic sacrifices, and that merit is understood to benefit not only the individual but also one’s family line.
A speaker named Ghūlastya is guiding the king through a catalogue of sacred places, pointing out a rare tīrtha of Mārkaṇḍeya located near the celebrated confluence of the Gomati and Gaṅgā, and describing the spiritual rewards of visiting it.