Shloka 48
Pulastya’s Tīrtha Enumeration: Sarasvatī, Naimiṣa, Gayā, and Associated Phalaśruti
Chapter 82
प्रदक्षिणं तत: कृत्वा ययातिपतन व्रजेत् । हयमेधस्य यज्ञस्य फल प्राप्रोति तत्र वै,तदनन्तर उस तीर्थकी परिक्रमा करके वहाँसे ययातिपतन नामक तीर्थमें जाय। वहाँ जानेसे यात्रीको अवश्य ही अश्वमेधयज्ञका फल मिलता है
pradakṣiṇaṃ tataḥ kṛtvā yayātipatanaṃ vrajet | aśvamedhasya yajñasya phalaṃ prāpnoti tatra vai ||
After making a respectful circumambulation, one should proceed to the sacred ford called Yayātipatana. A pilgrim who goes there is said, indeed, to obtain the merit (phala) of performing the Aśvamedha sacrifice—thus emphasizing the Mahābhārata’s theme that disciplined pilgrimage and reverence at tīrthas can confer great spiritual reward without the violence and vast resources of royal rites.
घुलस्त्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that reverent conduct in pilgrimage—such as performing pradakṣiṇā and visiting a prescribed tīrtha—can yield immense spiritual merit, even equated here with the fruit of the grand Aśvamedha sacrifice, highlighting the power of devotion and disciplined practice over sheer ritual magnitude.
The speaker gives practical guidance for a pilgrim’s route: after circumambulating the current sacred site, the traveler should go to the tīrtha named Yayātipatana, where the visit is praised as granting the merit of an Aśvamedha.