Shloka 3

Devanagari script

सरस्वती महापुण्या हृदिनी तीर्थमालिनी । समुद्रगा महावेगा यमुना यत्र पाण्डव,तीर्थोंकी पंक्तिसे सुशोभित सरस्वती नदी बड़ी पुण्यदायिनी है। पाण्डुनन्दन! समुद्रमें मिलनेवाली महावेगशालिनी यमुना भी उत्तर दिशामें ही हैं

Transliteration

Sarasvatī mahāpuṇyā hṛdinī tīrthamālinī | samudragā mahāvegā Yamunā yatra Pāṇḍava ||

Translation

पाण्डव! सरस्वती नदी महापुण्यदायिनी है, हृदय को हर्षित करनेवाली और तीर्थों की माला से सुशोभित है। वहीं समुद्रगामिनी महावेगशालिनी यमुना भी है।

Word by Word

सरस्वतीSarasvatī (river)

महापुण्याvery holy/most meritorious

हृदिनीabounding in lakes/pools

तीर्थमालिनीgarlanded with sacred fords (many tīrthas)

समुद्रगाgoing to/flowing into the sea

महावेगाof great speed/strong current

यमुनाYamunā (river)

यत्रwhere

पाण्डवO Pāṇḍava (son of Pāṇḍu)

Speaker

धौम्य उवाच

Characters & Entities

ध

धौम्य (Dhaumya)

प

पाण्डव (Pāṇḍava)

स

सरस्वती नदी (Sarasvatī River)

य

यमुना नदी (Yamunā River)

स

समुद्र (the ocean/sea)

त

तीर्थ (tīrtha; sacred ford/pilgrimage site)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse elevates tīrtha-yātrā (pilgrimage) as a dharmic practice: sacred rivers and their tīrthas are portrayed as sources of puṇya (merit) and inner purification, guiding the listener toward disciplined, value-centered living.

What is happening in the narrative?

Dhaumya is describing holy rivers and pilgrimage regions to the Pāṇḍava, highlighting the Sarasvatī with many tīrthas and the swift Yamunā that flows toward the sea—part of a broader guidance about sacred places during the Pāṇḍavas’ forest period.