Shloka 51
Tīrtha-yātrā: Phalaśruti and Sacred Geography from Lohitya to Prayāga
Pulastya’s Instruction
शड्खिनीतीर्थमासाद्य तीर्थसेवी कुरूद्वह । देव्यास्तीर्थे नर: स्नात्वा लभते रूपमुत्तमम्
Śaḍkhinītīrtham āsādya tīrthasevī kurūdvaha | devyās tīrthe naraḥ snātvā labhate rūpam uttamam ||
ಓ ಕುರುದ್ವಹ! ತೀರ್ಥಸೇವಕನು ಶಡ್ಖಿನೀ (ಶಂಖಿನೀ) ತೀರ್ಥವನ್ನು ತಲುಪಿ ದೇವಿಯ ತೀರ್ಥದಲ್ಲಿ ಸ್ನಾನ ಮಾಡಿದರೆ, ಅವನು ಅತ್ಯುತ್ತಮವಾದ ದೀಪ್ತಿಮಯ ರೂಪವನ್ನು ಪಡೆಯುತ್ತಾನೆ.
घुलस्त्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
Reverent pilgrimage and ritual bathing at a sacred tīrtha—especially one associated with the Goddess—are portrayed as purifying disciplines that confer auspicious qualities, here expressed as attaining an ‘excellent form’ (rūpam uttamam).
Ghūlastya addresses a Kuru noble and describes the fruit of visiting Śaḍkhinī-tīrtha: a pilgrim who reaches it and bathes at the Goddess’s sacred place gains exceptional beauty or radiance, as part of a broader tīrtha-māhātmya (praise of holy places) sequence in the Vana Parva.