पुलस्त्य उवाच । शृणु राजन्प्रवक्ष्यामि कथां पापप्रणाशिनीम् । यां श्रुत्वा मानवः सम्यक्सर्वपापैः प्रमुच्यते
pulastya uvāca | śṛṇu rājanpravakṣyāmi kathāṃ pāpapraṇāśinīm | yāṃ śrutvā mānavaḥ samyaksarvapāpaiḥ pramucyate
Pulastya berkata: “Dengarlah, wahai raja; aku akan menuturkan kisah suci yang memusnahkan dosa. Sesiapa yang mendengarnya dengan benar akan terlepas sepenuhnya daripada segala dosa.”
Pulastya
Tirtha: Prabhāsa
Type: kshetra
Listener: Rājan (king; name not specified in the given verses)
Scene: A forest-āśrama setting: sage Pulastya seated on kuśa grass, holding a palm-leaf manuscript, addressing a king seated respectfully; a subtle aura of sanctity, with a riverbank or tīrtha hinted in the background.
Śravaṇa (reverent hearing) of a true Purāṇic kathā is itself a purifying practice capable of dissolving sin.
The verse introduces the forthcoming account connected to Caṇḍikāśrama within the Arbuda Khaṇḍa sacred geography.
Listening attentively and properly to the kathā (scriptural hearing as a dharmic act).