Shloka 144
युधिष्ठिरस्य अर्जुनप्रेषण-युक्तिवर्णनम् | Yudhiṣṭhira’s Rationale for Sending Arjuna and Request to Dhaumya
अश्वमेधस्य यत् पुण्यं तन््मासेनाधिगच्छति । सर्वतीर्थवरे चैव यो वसेत महाह्दे
aśvamedhasya yat puṇyaṃ tan māsena adhigacchati | sarvatīrthavare caiva yo vaset mahāhrade ||
అశ్వమేధ యజ్ఞంలో లభించే పుణ్యం, అదే ఒక మాసంలో లభించును—సర్వతీర్థాలలో శ్రేష్ఠమైన ఆ మహాహ్రదంలో ఎవడు నివసించునో అతనికి.
घुलस्त्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that the spiritual merit associated with an expensive, royal-scale sacrifice like the Aśvamedha can be matched through a month of disciplined residence at an exceptionally sacred tīrtha (here, a great lake). It elevates accessible, sustained practice—pilgrimage, restraint, and reverent living—over mere grandeur of ritual.
A speaker named Ghūlastya is praising a particular sacred place (described as the best of all tīrthas, a great lake) by stating its extraordinary efficacy: staying there for a month grants merit equal to that of performing the Aśvamedha. This functions as tīrtha-māhātmya within the Vana Parva’s pilgrimage context.