Mahabharata — Shalya Parva, Shloka 41
Trita in the Well (Udapāna-kathā) — Balarāma’s Tīrtha Observances
पूर्व महाराज यदुप्रवीर ऋषत्विक्सुह्ृद्विप्रगणैश्न सार्थम् पुण्यं प्रभासं समुपाजगाम यत्रोडुराड् यक्ष्मणा क्लिश्यमान:
pūrvaṃ mahārāja yadupravīra ṛṣatvik-suhṛd-vipra-gaṇaiḥ sa sārdham | puṇyaṃ prabhāsaṃ samupājagāma yatroḍurāḍ yakṣmaṇā kliśyamānaḥ ||
ヴァイシャンパーヤナは言った。「昔、偉大なる王よ、ヤドゥ族随一の英雄は、祭官（ṛtvij）と親しき友、そして婆羅門の群れを伴い、聖なるティールタ『プラバーサ』（Prabhāsa）へ赴いた。そこは、痨病（yakṣmā）に苦しむ星々の主・月が、救いを得て光輝を取り戻した地である。その聖地が月を再び輝かせたゆえに、地上では『プラバーサ』—『輝きの地』として名高くなった。」
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the Mahābhārata’s ethic of tīrtha-yātrā: sacred places are portrayed as sources of puṇya and restoration—spiritual and even cosmic—symbolized by the Moon regaining radiance at Prabhāsa. It reinforces reverence for holy geography and the company of priests, brāhmaṇas, and well-wishers in meritorious acts.
Vaiśampāyana recounts an earlier event: the foremost Yādava hero (understood here as Balarāma) travels with priests, friends, and brāhmaṇas to the holy site Prabhāsa. The place is famed because the Moon, suffering from yakṣmā, was relieved there and shone again—hence the name ‘Prabhāsa,’ the ‘place of splendor.’
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