Mahabharata — Vana Parva, Shloka 7
युधिष्ठिरस्य अर्जुनप्रेषण-युक्तिवर्णनम् | Yudhiṣṭhira’s Rationale for Sending Arjuna and Request to Dhaumya
प्लक्षाद्वेवी खुता राजन् महापुण्या सरस्वती । तत्राभिषेकं कुर्वीत वल्मीकान्नि:सृते जले
plakṣād devī kṣutā rājan mahāpuṇyā sarasvatī | tatrābhiṣekaṃ kurvīta valmīkān niḥsṛte jale ||
प्लक्षाद् देवी खता राजन् महापुण्या सरस्वती। तत्राभिषेकं कुर्वीत वल्मीकान्निःसृते जले॥
घुलस्त्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that certain tīrthas (sacred places) are approached with reverence and disciplined action: bathing (abhiṣeka) at the holy source of Sarasvatī is prescribed as a means of purification and moral renewal, reinforcing commitment to dharma.
Ghūlastya is guiding the king through a sacred landscape, identifying the origin-place of the goddess-river Sarasvatī near a plakṣa tree and instructing him to bathe in the water that emerges from an anthill, a specific ritual act within the broader tīrtha-yātrā account.