Shloka 7
Pulastya’s Tīrtha Enumeration: Sarasvatī, Naimiṣa, Gayā, and Associated Phalaśruti
Chapter 82
प्रदक्षिणां यः पृथिवीं करोत्यमरसंनिभ । कि फल तस्य विप्रर्षे तन्मे ब्रूहि सुनिश्चितम्,देवतुल्य ब्रह्मर्ष! जो (तीर्थोंके उद्देश्यसे) सारी पृथ्वीकी परिक्रमा करता है, उसे क्या फल मिलता है? यह निश्चित करके मुझे बताइये
pradakṣiṇāṁ yaḥ pṛthivīṁ karoty amarasaṁnibha | kiṁ phalaṁ tasya viprarṣe tan me brūhi suniścitam ||
Bhīṣma perguntou ao sábio—que resplandecia como um imortal—: «Ó brahmarṣi, igual aos deuses! Aquele que, com o propósito de peregrinar aos tīrtha, realiza a pradakṣiṇā circundando toda a terra, que fruto de mérito obtém? Dize-me com certeza».
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights that dharmic actions are evaluated by their intended purpose and disciplined performance: a world-circumambulation undertaken as a pilgrimage is treated as a serious spiritual vow whose ‘fruit’ (phala) is worth clarifying authoritatively.
Bhīṣma addresses a Brahmin sage, praising him as godlike, and asks for a definitive statement about the merit gained by someone who travels around the entire earth in the spirit of visiting sacred places (tīrthas).