Shloka 96
युधिष्ठिरस्य अर्जुनप्रेषण-युक्तिवर्णनम् | Yudhiṣṭhira’s Rationale for Sending Arjuna and Request to Dhaumya
तत्र स्नात्वा नरव्याप्र दृष्टमेतत् पुरातनै: । जहाँ बाँबीका जल है, वहाँसे इसकी दूरी छ: शम्यानिपात- है। यह निश्चित माप बताया गया है। नरश्रेष्ठ! उस तीर्थमें स्नान करनेसे मनुष्यको सहस्र कपिलादान और अश्वमेधयज्ञका फल प्राप्त होता है; इसे प्राचीन ऋषियोंने प्रत्यक्ष अनुभव किया है,कृष्णशुक्लावुभौ पक्षौ गयायां यो वसेन्नर: । पुनात्यासप्तमं राजन् कुल नास्त्यत्र संशय:
tatra snātvā naravyāghra dṛṣṭam etat purātanaiḥ | yatra bāmbīkā jalaṃ tatraitasya dūrī ṣaṭ śamyānipātaḥ—iti niścitaṃ māpaṃ proktam | narāśreṣṭha! tasmin tīrthe snānena manuṣyāya sahasra-kapilā-dānasya aśvamedha-yajñasya ca phalaṃ prāpyate; etat prācīnair ṛṣibhiḥ pratyakṣam anubhūtam | kṛṣṇa-śuklau ubhau pakṣau gayāyāṃ yo vasen naraḥ | punāty asaptamaṃ rājan kulaṃ nāsty atra saṃśayaḥ ||
Ghūlastya disse: “Ó tigre entre os homens, tendo-te banhado ali, os anciãos confirmaram esta medida antiga: desde o lugar onde se encontra a água de Bāmbīkā, a distância é de seis arremessos de ‘śamyā’—esta é a medida fixa. Ó melhor dos homens, ao banhar-se nesse vau sagrado, a pessoa obtém o mérito de doar mil vacas de pelagem fulva e o fruto de realizar o sacrifício do Aśvamedha; os rishis antigos conheceram isso por experiência direta. E, ó rei, quem habitar em Gayā durante as duas quinzena—escura e clara—purifica sua linhagem até a sétima geração; disso não há dúvida.”
घुलस्त्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage teaches the Mahābhārata’s tīrtha-ethic: sincere pilgrimage practices—especially bathing at a revered tīrtha and disciplined residence at Gayā for a full lunar cycle—are portrayed as powerful means of purification and moral-spiritual uplift, extending benefit beyond the individual to one’s lineage.
A speaker named Ghūlastya describes a specific sacred site and its traditional measurements, then extols the extraordinary merit of bathing there and of staying at Gayā through both lunar fortnights, asserting that these acts yield results comparable to major gifts and royal sacrifices and purify a family line up to seven generations.