Shloka 34
Dhaumya’s Enumeration of Eastern Tīrthas
Prācī-diś Tīrtha-kathana
गवां मेधमवाप्रोति वासुकेलोकमुत्तमम् । वेणाया: संगमे स्नात्वा वाजिमेधफलं लभेत्
gavāṁ medham avāpnoti vāsukelokam uttamam | veṇāyāḥ saṅgame snātvā vājimedhaphalaṁ labhet ||
Pulastya said: “By performing the ‘cow-sacrifice’ (a rite of great merit), one attains the excellent world of Vāsuki. And by bathing at the confluence of the river Veṇā, one gains the fruit of an Aśvamedha sacrifice.” In context, the statement extols sacred acts—ritual offering and holy bathing—as means of accruing merit and reaching auspicious realms, presenting a moral economy where disciplined, sanctioned religious practice yields elevated spiritual results.
पुलस्त्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that prescribed sacred actions—major sacrifices and bathing at a revered confluence—are understood to generate powerful spiritual merit, leading to exalted destinations (such as Vāsuki’s realm) and results comparable to the famed Aśvamedha.
Pulastya is describing the merits (phala) of particular religious acts and places: performing a gomedha leads to the excellent world of Vāsuki, and bathing at the Veṇā’s confluence grants the merit equivalent to an Aśvamedha.