Shloka 78

Devanagari script

ततो वाराणसी गत्वा अर्चयित्वा वृषध्वजम्‌ । कपिलाहवदे नर: स्नात्वा राजसूयमवाप्रुयात्‌,तदनन्तर वाराणसी (काशी)-तीर्थमें जाकर भगवान्‌ शंकरकी पूजा करे और कपिलाहदमें गोता लगाये; इससे मनुष्यको राजसूययज्ञका फल प्राप्त होता है

Transliteration

tato vārāṇasīṃ gatvā arcayitvā vṛṣadhvajam | kapilāhrade naraḥ snātvā rājasūyam avāpnuyāt ||

Translation

Then, having gone to Vārāṇasī, one should worship Lord Śiva, the bearer of the bull as his emblem. After bathing in the Kapilā lake there, a person is said to attain the merit equivalent to performing the Rājasūya sacrifice—teaching that sincere pilgrimage, worship, and ritual purity can confer great spiritual fruit without the violence and vast resources of royal rites.

Word by Word

ततःthen, thereafter

वाराणसीम्to Vārāṇasī (Kāśī)

गत्वाhaving gone

अर्चयित्वाhaving worshipped

वृषध्वजम्Vṛṣadhvaja (Śiva; 'whose banner is the bull')

कपिलाह्रदेin/at Kapilahrada (the Kapila lake/pond)

नरःa man

स्नात्वाhaving bathed

राजसूयम्Rājasūya (sacrifice)

अवाप्नुयात्would obtain / may obtain

Speaker

घुलस्त्य उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vārāṇasī (Kāśī)

Śiva (Vṛṣadhvaja)

Kapilā-hrada

Rājasūya-yajña

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse emphasizes that devotion to Śiva and disciplined tīrtha-practice (worship and sacred bathing) can yield exalted merit comparable to grand royal sacrifices, highlighting accessible paths of dharma through faith and purity.

What is happening in the narrative?

The speaker describes a specific pilgrimage sequence: go to Vārāṇasī, worship Śiva (Vṛṣadhvaja), and bathe in Kapilā-hrada; the promised result is the merit of the Rājasūya sacrifice.