Shloka 2

Saptasārasvata-tīrtha-prasaṅgaḥ | The Saptasārasvata Pilgrimage Account and the Maṅkaṇaka Narrative

Devanagari script

तस्मात्‌ तु ऋषयो नित्यं प्राहुर्विनशनेति च । वैशम्पायनजी कहते हैं--राजन! उदपानतीर्थसे चलकर हलधारी बलराम विनशनतीर्थमें आये, जहाँ (दुष्कर्मपरायण) शूद्रों और आभीरोंके प्रति द्वेष होनेसे सरस्वती नदी विनष्ट (अदृश्य) हो गयी है। इसीलिये ऋषिगण उसे सदा विनशनतीर्थ कहते हैं ।। १३ || तत्राप्युपस्पृश्य बल: सरस्वत्यां महाबल:

Transliteration

tasmāt tu ṛṣayo nityaṁ prāhur vinaśaneti ca | tatrāpy upaspṛśya balaḥ sarasvatyāṁ mahābalaḥ ||

Translation

ໄວສຳປາຍະນະ ກ່າວວ່າ: ດັ່ງນັ້ນ ພວກລຶສີຈຶ່ງເອີ້ນສະຖານທີ່ນັ້ນວ່າ “ວິນາຊະນະ” (ບ່ອນແຫ່ງການຫາຍສາບສູນ) ຢູ່ເປັນນິດ. ທີ່ນັ້ນເອງ ພະບະລາຣາມຜູ້ມີພະລັງອັນຍິ່ງໃຫຍ່ ໄດ້ປະກອບພິທີຊຳລະກາຍ ໂດຍສຳຜັດນ້ຳແຫ່ງສະຣັສວະຕີ. ຂໍ້ຄວາມນີ້ວາງສະຖານທີ່ເປັນຄຳເຕືອນທາງທຳ: ເມື່ອຄວາມອາຄາດແລະການກະທຳຊົ່ວຄອບງຳ ແມ່ນແຕ່ແມ່ນ້ຳອັນສັກສິດກໍຖືກເວົ້າວ່າຫາຍໄປຈາກສາຍຕາ ແລະນາມ “ວິນາຊະນະ” ກໍຮັກສາຄວາມຈື່ຈຳທາງຈິດທຳນັ້ນໄວ້.

Word by Word

• {'tasmāt': 'therefore

• for that reason', 'tu': 'but

• indeed (emphatic/contrastive particle)', 'ṛṣayaḥ': 'sages

• seers', 'nityam': 'always

• continually', 'prāhuḥ': 'they said

• they call (perfect of √brū)', 'vinaśana': 'Vinaśana

• ‘disappearance/destruction’ (a tīrtha-name)', 'iti': 'thus

• so (quotative particle)', 'ca': 'and

• also', 'tatra api': 'there also

• in that place too', 'upaspṛśya': 'having touched water for purification

• having performed ablution (gerund of upa-√spṛś)', 'balaḥ': 'Bala (Balarāma)

• also ‘strength’ as an epithet', 'sarasvatyām': 'in/at the Sarasvatī (locative)', 'mahābalaḥ': 'very strong

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśampāyana
• Balarāma (Haladhara/Bala)
• Sarasvatī River
• Vinaśana tīrtha
• Ṛṣis (sages)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Sacred places preserve ethical memory: persistent wrongdoing and hostility are portrayed as causing even a holy river to ‘disappear,’ while righteous conduct is expressed through purification and reverence at tīrthas.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana explains why the site is called Vinaśana, and then notes that Balarāma, continuing his tīrtha-journey, performs ritual purification at the Sarasvatī there.