Mahabharata — Vana Parva, Shloka 36
युधिष्ठिरस्य अर्जुनप्रेषण-युक्तिवर्णनम् | Yudhiṣṭhira’s Rationale for Sending Arjuna and Request to Dhaumya
अग्निष्टोममवाप्रोति मुनिलोकं॑ च गच्छति । राजेन्द्र! तदनन्तर उत्तम ज्ञानपावन तीर्थमें जाय। वहाँ जानेसे मनुष्य अग्निष्टोमयज्ञका फल पाता और मुनिलोकमें जाता है
agniṣṭomam avāpnoti munilokaṃ ca gacchati | rājendra! tad-anantaraṃ uttama-jñāna-pāvanaṃ tīrthaṃ yāyāt | tatra gamanāt manuṣyaḥ agniṣṭoma-yajñasya phalaṃ prāpnoti munilokaṃ ca gacchati || tato gacchet rājendra sugandhāṃ loka-viśrutām | sarva-pāpa-viśuddhātmā brahmaloke mahīyate ||
Ghūlastya berkata: “Wahai raja terbaik, setelah itu hendaklah seseorang pergi ke tīrtha yang menyucikan melalui pengetahuan tertinggi. Dengan mengunjunginya, ia memperoleh pahala yajña Agniṣṭoma dan mencapai dunia para resi. Kemudian, wahai Raja, lanjutkanlah ke Sugandhā yang termasyhur di segenap dunia. Dengan batin yang bersih dari segala dosa, ia dimuliakan di Brahmaloka.”
घुलस्त्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that tīrtha-yātrā (pilgrimage) and inner purification can confer merits comparable to major Vedic sacrifices, culminating in elevated spiritual destinations (Muniloka, Brahmaloka). Ethical emphasis falls on cleansing sin and refining the inner self, not merely performing external rites.
A sage (Ghūlastya) instructs a king (addressed as Rājendra) in a sequence of pilgrimage destinations: first a tīrtha said to purify through highest knowledge, then the famed Sugandhā tīrtha, describing the spiritual fruits—sacrificial merit, access to the sages’ realm, and honor in Brahmaloka.