Lokapāla-samāgamaḥ—Arjuna Receives Astras from the World-Guardians
Book 3, Chapter 42
तव सानूनि कुज्जाश्न नद्यः प्र्रवणानि च । तीर्थानि च सुपुण्यानि मया दृष्टान्यनेकश:,“तुम्हारे शिखर, कुंजवन, नदियाँ, झरने और परम पुण्यमय तीर्थस्थान मैंने अनेक बार देखे हैं
tava sānūni kuñjāś ca nadyaḥ prapātāni ca | tīrthāni ca supuṇyāni mayā dṛṣṭāny anekaśaḥ ||
Disse Vaiśampāyana: “Tuas encostas, teus bosques, teus rios e cachoeiras, e teus vados de peregrinação supremamente sagrados — tudo isso eu vi muitas vezes.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
The verse highlights the ethical-religious value of tīrthas—places where contact with sacred geography and disciplined travel is believed to generate puṇya (merit). It frames nature (slopes, groves, rivers, waterfalls) as spiritually significant, encouraging reverence and mindful engagement with holy places.
Vaiśampāyana, narrating the epic, reports a speaker addressing a revered landscape (often a mountain/region associated with tīrthas), saying they have repeatedly seen its slopes, groves, rivers, waterfalls, and holy pilgrimage sites—evoking familiarity and the sanctity of the setting within the Vana Parva’s travel-and-pilgrimage atmosphere.