तपस्तप्तं पुरा यत्र वसिष्ठेन समाश्रितात् । तस्माद्वटवनात्पुण्यादुदुम्बरवनं गता । मेरुपादे च तत्रैव तण्डिर्यत्रा तपत्तपः
tapastaptaṃ purā yatra vasiṣṭhena samāśritāt | tasmādvaṭavanātpuṇyādudumbaravanaṃ gatā | merupāde ca tatraiva taṇḍiryatrā tapattapaḥ
Di tempat itu, pada zaman dahulu, resi Vasiṣṭha—setelah menetap di sana—telah menjalankan tapa (tapas). Dari Vaṭavana yang penuh jasa itu, baginda pergi ke rimba Udumbara. Dan di Merupāda juga, di situlah Taṇḍi menekuni tapasnya.
Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) (deduced)
Tirtha: Vaṭavana; Udumbara-vana; Taṇḍi-tapas-sthāna (Merupāda)
Type: kshetra
Scene: A sacred banyan grove where Vasiṣṭha once performed austerities; Sarasvatī moves onward to an udumbara grove; nearby, a marked spot at Merupāda commemorates Taṇḍi’s intense tapas.
Holy places gain enduring sanctity through the tapas of great ṛṣis, making the landscape itself a treasury of merit.
Vaṭavana and Udumbaravana, with Merupāda noted as a tapas-site associated with Taṇḍi.
No direct prescription is stated; the verse emphasizes the sanctifying power of austerities performed at these sites.