Shloka 20
Plakṣāvataraṇa–Yamunā Tīrtha and Prajāpati’s Vedī
Kurukṣetra Threshold
लोगश उवाच एवमेतन्महाबाहो पश्यन्ति परमर्षय: । (इह स्नात्वा तपोयुक्तांस्त्रील्लॉकान् सचराचरान्) सरस्वतीमिमां पुण्यां पुण्यैकशरणावृताम्,लोमशजीने कहा--महाबाहो! तुम ठीक कहते हो। यहाँ स्नान करके तपःशक्तिसम्पन्न श्रेष्ठ ऋषिगण इसी प्रकार चराचर प्राणियोंसहित तीनों लोकोंका दर्शन करते हैं। अब इस पुण्यसलिला सरस्वतीका दर्शन करो जो एकमात्र पुण्यका ही आश्रय लेनेवाले पुरुषोंसे घिरी हुई है
lomaśa uvāca evam etan mahābāho paśyanti paramarṣayaḥ | iha snātvā tapoyuktāṁs trīn lokān sacarācarān sarasvatīm imāṁ puṇyāṁ puṇyaikaśaraṇāvṛtām |
Lomaśa said: “So it is, O mighty-armed one. Here, after bathing, the supreme sages—endowed with the power of austerity—behold the three worlds together with all that moves and all that is unmoving. Now behold this holy Sarasvatī, a sacred stream, surrounded by those who take refuge in merit alone.”
लोगश उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse emphasizes the purifying and elevating power of tīrtha-bathing when joined with tapas and disciplined virtue: such practice grants sages a heightened, comprehensive vision of reality (the three worlds with all beings) and directs one toward refuge in puṇya—ethical merit and sacred conduct.
Lomaśa, guiding the heroes on pilgrimage, confirms the listener’s understanding and points out the sanctity of the Sarasvatī. He explains that great ascetics, after bathing there, attain an expanded vision of the cosmos, and he invites the listener to behold the holy river revered by the virtuous.