Shloka 139
Tīrtha-yātrā: Phalaśruti and Sacred Geography from Lohitya to Prayāga
Pulastya’s Instruction
विश्वामित्रस्य तत्रैव तीर्थ भरतसत्तम । तत्र स्नात्वा नरश्रेष्ठ ब्राह्मण्यमधिगच्छति,भरतसत्तम! वहीं विश्वामित्रतीर्थ है। नरश्रेष्ठ। वहाँ स्नान करनेसे ब्राह्मणत्वकी प्राप्ति होती है
viśvāmitrasya tatraiva tīrthaṃ bharatasattama | tatra snātvā naraśreṣṭha brāhmaṇyam adhigacchati ||
Ó melhor dos Bhāratas! Ali mesmo está o vau sagrado de Viśvāmitra. Ó primeiro entre os homens! Quem se banha ali alcança o estado e o mérito da verdadeira condição bramânica—pureza, autocontrole e qualificação espiritual—pelo poder santificador desse tīrtha.
घुलस्त्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that sacred places (tīrthas) are meant to transform character: bathing at Viśvāmitra’s tīrtha symbolizes purification and the cultivation of brāhmaṇya—inner discipline, truthfulness, and spiritual fitness—rather than mere social status.
The speaker points out Viśvāmitra’s pilgrimage spot to the listener (addressed as ‘best of the Bharatas’ and ‘best of men’) and states the spiritual benefit (phala) of bathing there: attainment of brāhmaṇya.