Shloka 148
Tīrtha-yātrā: Phalaśruti and Sacred Geography from Lohitya to Prayāga
Pulastya’s Instruction
पृथूदकात् तीर्थतमं नान्यत् तीर्थ कुरूद्गह | तन्मेध्यं तत् पवित्र च पावनं च न संशय:,कुरुश्रेष्ठ! पृथूदकसे श्रेष्ठतम तीर्थ दूसरा कोई नहीं है। वही मेध्य, पवित्र और पावन है, इसमें संशय नहीं है
pṛthūdakāt tīrthatamaṃ nānyat tīrtha kurūdgaha | tanmedhyaṃ tat pavitra ca pāvanaṃ ca na saṃśayaḥ, kuruśreṣṭha |
Ghulasthya said: “O subduer of the Kurus, there is no sacred ford more excellent than Pṛthūdaka. It alone is fit for holy rites, pure in itself, and a purifier of others—of this there is no doubt, O best of the Kurus.”
घुलस्त्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse extols the unique spiritual efficacy of a particular tīrtha (Pṛthūdaka), emphasizing that certain sacred places are regarded as exceptionally ‘medhya’ (ritually fit), ‘pavitra’ (pure), and ‘pāvana’ (purifying). Ethically, it reinforces the Mahābhārata theme that disciplined pilgrimage and contact with sanctified spaces can support inner purification and dharmic renewal.
A speaker named Ghulasthya addresses a Kuru hero with honorific epithets, praising Pṛthūdaka as the foremost pilgrimage site and asserting its unsurpassed sanctity and purifying power. The statement functions as tīrtha-māhātmya—guidance and encouragement within a pilgrimage-oriented episode of the Vana Parva.