Shloka 36
Adhyaya 6 — Balarama’s Dilemma, Drunken Wanderings in Revata’s Grove, and the Slaying of the Suta
अथ येयं समारब्धा तीर्थयात्रा मयाधुना ।
एतामेव प्रयास्यामि प्रतिलोमां सरस्वतीम् ॥
atha yeyāṃ samārabdhā tīrthayātrā mayādhunā / etām eva prayāsyāmi pratilomāṃ sarasvatīm //
Kini, ziarah ke tirtha yang suci yang telah kutempuh—jalur inilah yang akan kuikuti, berjalan ke hulu menyusuri Sarasvatī, melawan arus yang biasa.
FAQs
The verse expresses saṅkalpa (firm resolve): spiritual practice is advanced by deliberate commitment, even when it requires moving ‘against the current’ of ease, habit, or convention. Pilgrimage is framed not as tourism but as a disciplined undertaking (samārabdhā) that must be completed with intent.
This verse aligns most closely with ‘Vaṃśānucarita’/narrative conduct and tīrtha-māhātmya material rather than the core five (sarga, pratisarga, vaṃśa, manvantara, vaṃśānucarita). It is ancillary dharma-geography: describing sacred places and the mode of approaching them.
‘Pratiloma’ (reverse/upstream) can be read symbolically: the seeker turns inward and ascends toward the source (yoni) of purity and knowledge. The Sarasvatī, as both river and goddess of speech/gnosis, suggests a movement from outer ritual travel toward subtler attainment—returning to the origin of wisdom.