Shloka 33
Ārṣṭiṣeṇa’s Siddhi and the Tīrtha-Boons; Sindhudvīpa–Devāpi Brāhmaṇya; Viśvāmitra’s Tapas Begins
सुप्रीत: पुरुषव्यात्र सर्वान् पुत्रानुपासत: । राजन! नरव्याप्र! वे पुत्र जब उन बुद्धिमान् मुनिको ब्राह्मणसमूहोंसे सेवित तथा सैकड़ों तीर्थोंसे सुशोभित पुण्यसलिला सरस्वतीके तटपर ले आये, तब वे महातपस्वी महर्षि वहाँ विधिपूर्वक स्नान करके तीर्थके गुणोंको जानकर अपने पास बैठे हुए सभी पुत्रोंसे प्रसन्नतापूर्वक बोले-- ।। सरस्वत्युत्तरे तीरे यस्त्यजेदात्मनस्तनुम्
suprītaḥ puruṣavyāghra sarvān putrān upāsataḥ | rājan naravyāghra! yadā te putrāḥ tān buddhimān munīn brāhmaṇasaṃghaiḥ sevitaṃ ca śataśas tīrthaiḥ suśobhitaṃ puṇyasālinīṃ sarasvatīṃ taṭam ānayiṣuḥ, tadā te mahātapaso maharṣayaḥ tatra vidhivat snātvā tīrthaguṇān viditvā samupaviṣṭān sarvān putrān prati prasannatayā ūcuḥ— || sarasvaty uttare tīre yas tyajed ātmanaḥ tanum ||
Vaiśampāyana said: Pleased, O tiger among men, and attended by all his sons, the king—best of men—was brought by those sons to the sacred bank of the Sarasvatī, a place served by wise sages and assemblies of brāhmaṇas and adorned with hundreds of holy fords. There the great ascetics, the maharṣis, bathed according to rule; understanding the excellence of that tīrtha, they spoke with satisfaction to all the sons seated nearby: “Whoever gives up his body on the northern bank of the Sarasvatī …”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage frames tīrthas as morally and spiritually potent spaces: sages bathe ‘according to rule’ and then teach that dying (or relinquishing the body) at a supremely sacred location—here, the northern bank of the Sarasvatī—can be associated with special religious merit. The ethical emphasis is on reverence for sacred places, disciplined ritual conduct, and receiving guidance from realized ascetics.
A king, attended by his sons, is brought to the holy bank of the Sarasvatī, a region frequented by sages and brāhmaṇas and marked by many tīrthas. The maharṣis bathe properly, recognize the sanctity of the place, and then begin instructing the sons, introducing a statement about the merit of giving up one’s body on the river’s northern bank.