Shloka 11
गदायुद्ध-समारम्भः
Commencement of the Mace-Duel Proceedings
पुण्यं तीर्थवरं दृष्टवा विस्मयं परमं गत: । प्रभावं च सरस्वत्या: प्लक्षप्रस्रवणं बल:,जिनकी ध्वजापर तालका चिह्न सुशोभित होता है, वे बलरामजी उस पर्वतपर थोड़ी ही दूर गये थे कि उनकी दृष्टि एक पुण्यमय उत्तम तीर्थपर पड़ी। वह सरस्वतीकी उत्पत्तिका स्थान प्लक्षप्रख्वण नामक तीर्थ था। उसका दर्शन करके बलरामजीको बड़ा आश्चर्य हुआ
vaiśampāyana uvāca | puṇyaṃ tīrthavaraṃ dṛṣṭvā vismayaṃ paramaṃ gataḥ | prabhāvaṃ ca sarasvatyāḥ plakṣaprasravaṇaṃ balaḥ ||
Vaiśampāyana said: Seeing a supremely holy and excellent ford, Balarāma was filled with the greatest wonder. He beheld there the manifest power of the river Sarasvatī—at Plakṣa-prasravaṇa, the revered place where she is said to arise—an encounter that inspires reverence for sacred geography and the purifying force of pilgrimage even amid the wider turmoil of war.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the dharmic value of tīrtha-darśana: sacred places are not merely locations but embodiments of purifying power (prabhāva). Even in an age of conflict, reverence for holy sites and the cultivation of awe toward the sacred supports inner restraint and ethical orientation.
Vaiśampāyana narrates that Balarāma, while traveling, comes upon an eminent sacred ford. On seeing Plakṣa-prasravaṇa—celebrated as the source-region of the Sarasvatī—he is struck with profound wonder at the river’s sacred potency.