सर्वतीर्थेषु यत्पुण्यं सर्वदानेषु यत्फलम् । सर्वयज्ञैश्च यत्पुण्यं जायते श्रवणान्नृप
sarvatīrtheṣu yatpuṇyaṃ sarvadāneṣu yatphalam | sarvayajñaiśca yatpuṇyaṃ jāyate śravaṇānnṛpa
اے بادشاہ! تمام تیرتھوں کا جو پُنّیہ، تمام دانوں کا جو پھل، اور تمام یَجّیوں کا جو ثواب ہے—وہ سب اسی (کَتھا) کے سُننے سے پیدا ہوتا ہے۔
Unspecified (narrator addressing a king)
Listener: Nṛpa (King)
Scene: A forest-āśrama or sacred assembly: Vyāsa (or a sage) recites tīrtha-māhātmya to a king seated respectfully; listeners with folded hands; manuscripts/palm-leaf, sacrificial fire in background, riverbank hinted as archetypal tīrtha.
Devotional hearing is portrayed as a concentrated form of dharma that encapsulates many other meritorious acts.
The verse continues the Dharmāraṇya/Deva-majjānaka māhātmya, emphasizing its exceptional merit.
Śravaṇa (listening) to the māhātmya is prescribed as a merit-generating practice.