किमु षड्विंशतिं पार्थ प्राप याः क्षणदाकरः । सोऽपि तीर्थमिदं प्राप्य तपस्तप्त्वा सुदुश्चरम्
kimu ṣaḍviṃśatiṃ pārtha prāpa yāḥ kṣaṇadākaraḥ | so'pi tīrthamidaṃ prāpya tapastaptvā suduścaram
Wahai Pārtha, apa perlunya menyebut dua puluh enam kekotoran yang ditanggung ‘pembuat malam’ (Candra)? Bahkan dia pun, setelah mencapai tīrtha ini dan menjalani tapa yang amat sukar, menjadi suci.
Vyāsa (deduced, addressing Pārtha/Yudhiṣṭhira context)
Tirtha: Somānātha/Prabhāsa tīrtha (implied)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Yudhiṣṭhira (addressed as Pārtha here)
Scene: A dark, formidable figure symbolizing the ‘night-maker’ arrives at the tīrtha, then performs severe austerities—standing in meditation, fasting—until a radiant purification aura surrounds him near the shrine/riverbank.
Even heavy karmic burden can be relieved through reaching a sanctified tīrtha and undertaking sincere austerity.
The ‘this tīrtha’ of Revā Khaṇḍa, in a passage that is tying Soma’s story to Soma-nātha and its surrounding sacred geography.
Tapas (austerity) performed after reaching the tīrtha is highlighted as the means of purification.