Shloka 76
Pulastya’s Tīrtha Enumeration: Sarasvatī, Naimiṣa, Gayā, and Associated Phalaśruti
Chapter 82
ततो गच्छेत धर्मज्ञ वसोर्धारामभिष्टृताम् । गमनादेव तस्यां हि हयमेधफलं लभेत्,धर्मज्ञ! वहाँसे वसुधारातीर्थमें जाय, जो सबके द्वारा प्रशंसित है। वहाँ जानेमात्रसे अश्वमेधयज्ञका फल मिलता है
tato gacchet dharmajña vasordhārām abhiṣṭutām | gamanād eva tasyāṃ hi hayamedha-phalaṃ labhet, dharmajña ||
Then, O knower of dharma, one should proceed to the sacred ford called Vasudhārā, praised by all. For merely by going there, O righteous one, a person obtains the merit that is said to arise from performing the Aśvamedha sacrifice. The passage underscores an ethical ideal of pilgrimage: sincere movement toward a revered tīrtha is itself treated as a potent act of dharma, accessible without the violence, wealth, or royal power required for grand rites.
घुलस्त्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that sincere pilgrimage to a revered tīrtha can confer immense spiritual merit—here equated with the fruit of the Aśvamedha—highlighting dharma as attainable through devotion and right intention, not only through costly royal sacrifices.
A speaker is directing a dharma-minded listener to go next to the Vasudhārā tīrtha, praising it as universally celebrated and stating that simply visiting it grants the merit traditionally associated with the Aśvamedha sacrifice.