Shloka 37
Tapas-śreṣṭhatā: Anāśana as the Highest Austerity
Bhagīratha–Brahmā Saṃvāda
दशभिर्विश्वजिद्धिश्न शतैरष्टादशोत्तरै: । न चैव तेषां देवेश फलेनाहमिहागमम्
daśabhir viśvajid-dhiśna śatair aṣṭādaśottaraiḥ | na caiva teṣāṃ deveśa phalenāham ihāgamam, brahman |
भगिरथ बोले—“देवेश्वर! ब्रह्मन्! मैंने विश्वजित् यज्ञ दस बार किया और फिर उसके अतिरिक्त एक सौ अठारह बार और किया; तथापि उन कर्मों के फल से मैं यहाँ नहीं आया। मेरा यहाँ आना यज्ञ-पुण्य का प्रतिफल नहीं है।”
भगीरथ उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhagīratha emphasizes that the highest attainment is not merely a transactional result of ritual performance; sacrificial merit (yajña-phala) has limits, and true spiritual standing is not reducible to accumulated rites.
Bhagīratha addresses a divine figure (Deveśa) and a revered authority (Brahman), recounting the vast number of Viśvajit sacrifices he performed, yet declaring that his present arrival/condition is not due to those ritual fruits—framing a discussion on the nature of merit and higher dharma.