Pulastya’s Tīrtha Enumeration: Sarasvatī, Naimiṣa, Gayā, and Associated Phalaśruti
Chapter 82
कार्तिकीं तु विशेषण योडभिगच्छति पुष्करम्
kārtikīṁ tu viśeṣeṇa yo ’bhigacchati puṣkaram
ஆனால் கார்த்திக மாதத்தில் சிறப்பு விரத-நியமத்துடன் புஷ்கரத்திற்குச் செல்பவன்—
घुलस्त्य उवाच
The verse foregrounds the idea that time (Kārtika) and place (Puṣkara) together intensify religious merit: disciplined pilgrimage and special observance are presented as powerful means of ethical purification and dharmic uplift.
In the Vana Parva’s tīrtha-māhātmya context, the speaker begins describing the distinctive fruit of going to the sacred site Puṣkara specifically during Kārtika, setting up the ensuing praise of that pilgrimage’s spiritual efficacy.