Shloka 40
Account of Various Sacred Tīrthas
Pilgrimage Merits and Prayāga Supremacy
शरभंगाश्रमं गत्वा शुकस्य च महात्मनः । न दुर्गतिमवाप्नोति पुनाति स्वकुलं नरः
śarabhaṃgāśramaṃ gatvā śukasya ca mahātmanaḥ | na durgatimavāpnoti punāti svakulaṃ naraḥ
शरभङ्गाश्रमं गत्वा शुकस्य च महात्मनः । न दुर्गतिमवाप्नोति पुनाति स्वकुलं नरः ॥
Unspecified (narratorial/teaching voice within the Svargakhaṇḍa dialogue context)
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
Type: forest
Sandhi Resolution Notes: शरभंगाश्रमं → शरभङ्गाश्रमम्; दुर्गतिमवाप्नोति → दुर्गतिम् + अवाप्नोति.
FAQs
It states that visiting the hermitages of Śarabhaṅga and the sage Śuka prevents a person from attaining durgati (an evil fate) and brings purification to one’s family line.
Purāṇas often regard the presence and austerity of realized sages as sanctifying; their āśramas become spiritually potent places where contact, remembrance, and pilgrimage generate merit and inner purification.
It encourages seeking the company and sacred places associated with saints, implying that reverence, pilgrimage, and remembrance of the wise support moral uplift and benefit not only the individual but also their wider family.