Shloka 15
अत्र वै भरतो राजा राजन् क्रतुभिरिष्टवान् हयमेधेन यज्ञेन मेध्यमश्वमवासृजत्,राजन! राजा भरतने धर्मपूर्वक वसुधाका राज्य पाकर यहीं बहुत-से यज्ञ किये थे और यहीं अश्वमेधयज्ञके उद्देश्यसे उन्होंने अनेक बार कृष्णमृगके समान रंगवाले यज्ञसम्बन्धी श्यामकर्ण अश्वकों भूतलपर भ्रमणके लिये छोड़ा था। नरश्रेष्ठ इसी तीर्थमें ऋषिप्रवर संवर्तसे सुरक्षित हो महाराज मरुत्तने उत्तम यज्ञका अनुष्ठान किया। राजेन्द्र! यहाँ स्नान करके शुद्ध हुआ मनुष्य सम्पूर्ण लोकोंको प्रत्यक्ष देखता है और पापसे मुक्त हो पवित्र हो जाता है; अतः तुम इसमें भी स्नान करो
atra vai bharato rājā rājan kratubhir iṣṭavān hayamedhena yajñena medhyam aśvam avāsṛjat | rājan rājā bharatena dharmapūrvakaṃ vasudhāyā rājyaṃ prāpya ihāiva bahūn yajñān kṛtavān | ihāśvamedhayajñārthaṃ kṛṣṇamṛgasamavarṇaṃ yajñasambandhi śyāmakarṇam aśvān bhūtale bhramaṇāya bahuśo visṛṣṭavān | narśreṣṭha asmin tīrthe ṛṣipravara-saṃvartena rakṣitaḥ mahārājo maruttaḥ uttamaṃ yajñaṃ samājahāra | rājendra atra snātvā śuddho manuṣyaḥ sarvān lokān pratyakṣaṃ paśyati pāpāt pramucyate pavitro bhavati; ataḥ tvam api atra snāhi ||
Here, O king, King Bharata performed many sacrificial rites; for the Aśvamedha sacrifice he released a consecrated horse. Having righteously obtained sovereignty over the earth, Bharata carried out many sacrifices at this very place, and for the purpose of the Aśvamedha he repeatedly set free sacrificial horses—dark-hued like the black antelope, with dark ears—to wander upon the ground. O best of men, at this same sacred ford King Marutta, protected by the foremost sage Saṃvarta, completed an excellent sacrifice. O lord of kings, one who bathes here becomes purified: he beholds all worlds as if directly, is freed from sin, and becomes holy. Therefore you too should bathe here.
लोगश उवाच
Educational Q&A
Righteous rule expresses itself through dharma-based ritual and generosity, and sacred places (tīrthas) are presented as means of moral purification: bathing with faith is said to remove sin and elevate one’s vision toward higher worlds.
Lomaśa points out a particular tīrtha to the listener-king, praising it by recalling how Bharata performed many sacrifices there and released the Aśvamedha horse, and how King Marutta, protected by the sage Saṃvarta, completed a great sacrifice there; he then urges the king to bathe at the spot for purification.