श्रेयसां साधनान्यत्र पापघ्नान्यपि सर्वथा । परं हि परमश्चैष नियमो यस्त्वया कृतः
śreyasāṃ sādhanānyatra pāpaghnānyapi sarvathā | paraṃ hi paramaścaiṣa niyamo yastvayā kṛtaḥ
ここには最高の善へ至る手段があり、あらゆる仕方で罪を滅する修行もある。だが、あなたが行じたこの戒は最上であり、まことに最高である。
Śiva (Īśvara)
Tirtha: Avimukta-Kāśī
Type: kshetra
Listener: Śaunaka and ṛṣis (typical frame)
Scene: A serene ascetic/pilgrim in Kāśī receives instruction that many practices exist, yet a particular niyama is supreme; the city’s ghāṭs and a Śiva shrine form the backdrop.
Among many meritorious disciplines, one particular observance is elevated as the highest—signaling a hierarchy of values rooted in devotion and right offering.
Kāśī is the textual setting; the verse contributes to Kāśī’s mahātmya by presenting it as a place where supreme dharma is taught by Śiva.
The “supreme niyama” is referenced but not yet defined in this verse; the next verse clarifies it in terms of eating only after darśana/offerings.