Shloka 156
Dhaumya’s Enumeration of Eastern Tīrthas
Prācī-diś Tīrtha-kathana
वाजपेयमवाप्रोति देवै: सर्वैश्व पूज्यते । तदनन्तर पुण्यशोभिता पुण्यमयी लपेटिकामें जाकर स्नान करे। ऐसा करनेसे तीर्थयात्री वाजपेययज्ञका फल पाता और सम्पूर्ण देवताओंद्वारा पूजित होता है
vājapeyam avāpnoti devaiḥ sarvaiś ca pūjyate | tad-anantaraṁ puṇya-śobhitāṁ puṇya-mayīṁ lapeṭikāṁ gatvā snānaṁ kuryāt | evaṁ kṛte tīrtha-yātrī vājapeya-yajñasya phalaṁ prāpnoti sarva-devataiś ca pūjyate |
Pulastya disse: “Ao cumprir esta observância, o peregrino alcança o mérito do sacrifício Vājapeya e torna-se digno de honra por todos os deuses. Depois, deve ir ao lugar sagrado, doador de mérito, chamado Lapeṭikā—ornado de santidade—e banhar-se ali. Feito isso, o viajante dos tīrthas obtém o fruto do rito Vājapeya e é reverenciado por toda a hoste das divindades.”
पुलस्त्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage teaches that sincere pilgrimage and ritual bathing at a prescribed sacred site can confer merit comparable to an elaborate Vedic sacrifice (Vājapeya), emphasizing accessible paths to religious merit and the sanctifying power of tīrthas.
Pulastya is instructing about the results of visiting specific holy places: after completing the prior observance, the pilgrim should go to the tīrtha called Lapeṭikā and bathe; doing so grants the fruit of the Vājapeya sacrifice and brings honor from all the gods.