Shloka 8
Plakṣāvataraṇa–Yamunā Tīrtha and Prajāpati’s Vedī
Kurukṣetra Threshold
अन्रानुवंशं पठत: शृणु मे कुरुनन्दन । उलूखलैराभरणै: पिशाची यदभाषत,कुरुनन्दन! इस तीर्थके विषयमें एक परम्परा-प्राप्त कथाको सूचित करनेवाले कुछ श्लोक हैं जिन्हें मैं पढ़ता हूँ, तुम मेरे मुखसे सुनो--(प्राचीनकालकी बात है, कोई स्त्री अपने पुत्रके साथ इस तीर्थमें निवास करनेके लिये आयी थी, उससे) एक भयंकर पिशाचीने, जिसने ओखली-जैसे आभूषण पहन रखे थे, उन श्लोकोंको कहा था--
anrānuvamśaṃ paṭhataḥ śṛṇu me kurunandana | ulūkhalair ābharaṇaiḥ piśācī yad abhāṣata ||
O joy of the Kurus, listen to me as I recite an ancient, lineage-based tradition. I shall read out the verses that were spoken here by a fearsome female goblin, adorned with ornaments like mortars—verses that point to an old, inherited account connected with this sacred ford.
लोगश उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames the tīrtha’s significance through a tradition transmitted in succession: sacred places are understood not only by geography but by remembered narratives, and one should listen attentively to inherited accounts that preserve moral and ritual meaning.
The speaker addresses a Kuru prince and announces that he will recite an old, tradition-based story connected with the tīrtha, specifically verses once spoken there by a terrifying piśācī described as wearing mortar-like ornaments.