Shloka 145
Tīrtha-yātrā: Phalaśruti and Sacred Geography from Lohitya to Prayāga
Pulastya’s Instruction
पुण्यमाहु: कुरुक्षेत्र कुरुक्षेत्रात् सरस्वती । सरस्वत्याश्ष तीर्थानि तीर्थेभ्यश्व पृथूदकम्,कुरक्षेत्रतीर्थको सबसे पवित्र कहते हैं, कुरुक्षेत्रसे भी पवित्र है सरस्वती नदी, सरस्वतीसे भी पवित्र हैं उसके तीर्थ और उन तीर्थोंसे भी पवित्र हैं पृधूदक
puṇyam āhuḥ kurukṣetraṁ kurukṣetrāt sarasvatī | sarasvatyāś ca tīrthāni tīrthebhyaś ca pṛthūdakam ||
Người ta nói Kurukṣetra là nơi công đức bậc nhất; nhưng còn công đức hơn Kurukṣetra là sông Sarasvatī. Công đức hơn cả Sarasvatī là những tīrtha, những bến thiêng và chốn hành hương trên dòng sông ấy; và vượt lên trên tất cả những nơi đó, Pṛthūdaka được ca ngợi là chốn tẩy tịnh tối thượng.
घुलस्त्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches a hierarchy of sanctity—region, river, its tīrthas, and a particular tīrtha (Pṛthūdaka)—to emphasize that dharmic life is supported by seeking purifying influences, honoring sacred places, and cultivating inner cleanliness and restraint alongside outer pilgrimage.
In the Vana Parva’s tīrtha-yātrā context, the speaker extols the relative holiness of well-known sacred locales, directing attention from the famed Kurukṣetra to the Sarasvatī and then to its tīrthas, culminating in special praise of Pṛthūdaka as exceptionally purifying.