Shloka 4
The Glory of Vārāṇasī
Catalogue of Tīrthas and a Liṅga-Installation Episode
प्राजापत्यं तथा तीर्थं स्वर्गद्वारं तथैव च । जंबुकेश्वरमित्युक्तं धर्माख्यं तीर्थमुत्तमम्
prājāpatyaṃ tathā tīrthaṃ svargadvāraṃ tathaiva ca | jaṃbukeśvaramityuktaṃ dharmākhyaṃ tīrthamuttamam
Esse tīrtha chama-se Prājāpatya; é também conhecido como Svargadvāra, o «Portal do Céu». Diz-se que é Jambukeśvara — um excelente tīrtha célebre pelo nome de Dharma.
Unspecified narrator within the Adhyaya (dialogue context not provided in the input)
Primary Rasa: adbhuta
Secondary Rasa: vira
Type: tirtha
Sandhi Resolution Notes: तथैव = तथा + एव; जंबुकेश्वरमित्युक्तं = जम्बुकेश्वरम् + इति + उक्तम्; तीर्थमुत्तमम् = तीर्थम् + उत्तमम्; धर्माख्यं = धर्म + आख्यम् (समास/सन्धि)
FAQs
It preserves multiple traditional names for a single pilgrimage site—Prājāpatya, Svargadvāra, Jambukeśvara, and Dharma—showing how tīrthas are mapped through layered epithets, local cults, and theological associations.
By presenting the tīrtha as ‘Svargadvāra’ and ‘uttama’, it frames pilgrimage and devotion at a named sacred place (here associated with Jambukeśvara/Śiva) as a potent, grace-filled means toward higher spiritual attainments.
The tīrtha being called ‘Dharma’ suggests that sacred travel is not merely ritual; it should be aligned with righteousness—right conduct, purity of intention, and reverence—so that the pilgrimage becomes a lived practice of dharma.