Shloka 1
Indratīrtha–Ādityatīrtha: Balarāma’s Ritual Bathing, Dāna, and Sacred-Historical Recollections
ऑपनआक्रा बछ। अं अष्टचत्वारिशो&् ध्याय: बदरपाचनतीर्थकी महिमाके प्रसंगमें श्रुतावती और अरुन्धतीके तपकी कथा वैशम्पायन उवाच ततस्तीर्थवरं रामो ययौ बदरपाचनम् | तपस्विसिद्धचरितं यत्र कन्या धृतव्रता
vaiśampāyana uvāca | tataḥ tīrthavaraṃ rāmo yayau badarapācanaṃ | tapasvi-siddha-caritaṃ yatra kanyā dhṛta-vratā |
वैशम्पायन बोले—राजन्! तत्पश्चात् राम (बलराम) बदरपाचन नामक श्रेष्ठ तीर्थ में गए, जहाँ तपस्वी और सिद्ध पुरुष विचरते हैं। वहीं पूर्वकाल में भरद्वाज की ब्रह्मचारिणी, दृढ़-व्रता कुमारी पुत्री श्रुतावती निवास करती थी, जिसके रूप-सौन्दर्य की पृथ्वी पर कहीं उपमा न थी।
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse elevates dharma through tīrtha and tapas: true excellence is associated with places and persons marked by vows (vrata), celibate discipline (brahmacarya), and the company of siddhas—suggesting that moral authority arises from restraint and spiritual attainment rather than worldly force.
Vaiśampāyana continues the account of Balarāma’s pilgrimage: he arrives at the sacred place Badarapācana, described as a resort of ascetics and siddhas, and the scene introduces (or prepares to introduce) the story connected with the vowed maiden Śrutāvatī, daughter of the sage Bharadvāja.