Shloka 99
Pulastya’s Tīrtha Enumeration: Sarasvatī, Naimiṣa, Gayā, and Associated Phalaśruti
Chapter 82
गवां शतसहस्रेण राजसूयशतेन च । अश्वमेधसहस्रेण श्रेयान् सप्तार्चिषे चरु:,उनपर प्रसन्न होकर भगवानने उन्हें अष्टगुण-ऐश्वर्य अर्थात् अणिमा आदि आठ सिद्धियाँ प्रदान कीं। महाराज! तत्पश्चात् उनकी इच्छाके अनुसार अन्यान्य वर देकर भगवान् केशव वहाँसे उसी प्रकार अन्तर्धान हो गये, जैसे मेघोंकी घटामें बिजली तिरोहित हो जाती है। भारत! इसीलिये वह तीर्थ तीनों लोकोंमें सप्तचरुके नामसे विख्यात है। वहाँ अग्निके लिये दिया हुआ चरु एक लाख गोदान, सौ राजसूययज्ञ और सहस्र अश्वमेधयज्ञसे भी अधिक कल्याणकारी है। राजेन्द्र! वहाँसे लौटकर रुद्रपद नामक तीर्थमें जाय। वहाँ महादेवजीकी पूजा करके तीर्थयात्री पुरुष अश्वमेधका फल पाता है
gavāṁ śata-sahasreṇa rājasūya-śatena ca | aśvamedha-sahasreṇa śreyān saptārcīṣe caruḥ ||
Ghūlastya said: “A sacrificial offering (caru) made here for the Seven-flamed Fire is more beneficial than the gift of a hundred thousand cows, than a hundred Rājasūya sacrifices, and than a thousand Aśvamedha sacrifices.” In context, the passage praises the extraordinary merit of sincere devotion and proper worship at a sacred ford: a single rightly offered oblation, performed with faith at the appropriate tīrtha, can surpass vast displays of royal ritual power. It also directs the pilgrim onward—after returning from this place, one should go to the tīrtha called Rudrapada; worshipping Mahādeva there, the pilgrim attains the fruit of an Aśvamedha.
घुलस्त्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that sincere, properly performed worship at a sacred tīrtha can yield merit surpassing even enormous royal sacrifices and lavish gifts; inner devotion and right ritual context outweigh sheer scale.
The speaker extols a particular tīrtha associated with the Seven-flamed Fire, declaring that an oblation (caru) offered there exceeds the merit of vast donations and major sacrifices, and then points pilgrims onward to Rudrapada to worship Mahādeva for Aśvamedha-like merit.