Shloka 37
Tapas-śreṣṭhatā: Anāśana as the Highest Austerity
Bhagīratha–Brahmā Saṃvāda
दशभिर्विश्वजिद्धिश्न शतैरष्टादशोत्तरै: । न चैव तेषां देवेश फलेनाहमिहागमम्
daśabhir viśvajid-dhiśna śatair aṣṭādaśottaraiḥ | na caiva teṣāṃ deveśa phalenāham ihāgamam, brahman |
バギーラタは言った。「神々の主よ、ブラーフマナよ――私はヴィシュヴァジトの供犠を十度、さらに百十八度も重ねて行ったが、それでもその儀礼の果によってこの境地に至ったのではない。私がここへ来たのは、供犠の功徳の報いではないのだ。」
भगीरथ उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhagīratha emphasizes that the highest attainment is not merely a transactional result of ritual performance; sacrificial merit (yajña-phala) has limits, and true spiritual standing is not reducible to accumulated rites.
Bhagīratha addresses a divine figure (Deveśa) and a revered authority (Brahman), recounting the vast number of Viśvajit sacrifices he performed, yet declaring that his present arrival/condition is not due to those ritual fruits—framing a discussion on the nature of merit and higher dharma.