Shloka 93
Account of Various Sacred Tīrthas
Pilgrimage Merits and Prayāga Supremacy
ब्राह्मणेभ्यः परं नास्ति एवमाह पितामहः । यत्र गंगा महाराज स देशस्तत्र योजनम्
brāhmaṇebhyaḥ paraṃ nāsti evamāha pitāmahaḥ | yatra gaṃgā mahārāja sa deśastatra yojanam
برہمنوں سے بڑھ کر کچھ نہیں—یوں پِتامہہ برہما نے فرمایا۔ اے مہاراج، جہاں گنگا بہتی ہے، وہی دیس ایک یوجن تک مقدّس خطہ شمار ہوتا ہے۔
Unspecified narrator/teacher addressing a king (mahārāja), quoting Brahmā (Pitāmaha)
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
Type: river
Sandhi Resolution Notes: नास्ति = न + अस्ति; एवमाह = एवम् + आह; देशस्तत्र = देशः + तत्र.
FAQs
It presents a traditional Purāṇic valuation: Brāhmaṇas are described as unsurpassed, and this claim is reinforced by attributing it to Brahmā (Pitāmaha), giving it authoritative weight within the text’s dharma framework.
It states that wherever the Gaṅgā is present, the surrounding land is treated as a sanctified zone measured as a yojana—i.e., a recognized extent of holiness associated with the river.
The verse links reverence for learned and dharmic people (Brāhmaṇas) with reverence for tīrthas (like the Gaṅgā), implying that honoring dharma through persons and places is a valued religious practice.