Shloka 108

युधिष्ठिरस्य अर्जुनप्रेषण-युक्तिवर्णनम् | Yudhiṣṭhira’s Rationale for Sending Arjuna and Request to Dhaumya

Devanagari script

ततो गच्छेत ब्रह्मुर्षेगौतमस्य वन प्रियम्‌

Transliteration

tato gacchet brahmarṣe gautamasya vana-priyam | tat-paścāt brahmarṣi-gautamake priya-vanakī yātrā karet | tatra ahalyā-kuṇḍe snānena manuṣyaḥ paramagatiṃ prāpnoti | rājan! gautamasyāśrame gatvā manuṣyaḥ svārthe lakṣmīṃ prāpnoti |

Translation

随后应前往梵仙乔达摩（Gautama）所钟爱的森林。其后，当行朝圣之旅，至乔达摩珍爱的林苑。在那里，于阿诃利耶（Ahalyā）之池沐浴者，得至最高境界。噢，大王！前往乔达摩的阿湿罗摩（āśrama）者，便为自身赢得吉祥与兴盛。

Word by Word

• ततः: then/from there
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः

• गच्छेत्: should go
• Type: Verb
• Root: गम्
• Form: Vidhi-lin (optative), 3, singular, Parasmaipada

• ब्रह्मर्षेः: of the brahmarshi (great sage)
• ब्रह्मर्षेः: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्रह्मर्षि
• Form: masculine, genitive, singular

• गौतमस्य: of Gautama
• गौतमस्य: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: गौतम
• Form: masculine, genitive, singular

• वनम्: forest
• वनम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: वन
• Form: neuter, accusative, singular

• प्रियम्: dear/beloved
• प्रियम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: प्रिय
• Form: neuter, accusative, singular

Speaker

घुलस्त्य उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Gautama (ṛṣi)
• Gautama’s forest (vana-priya)
• Gautama’s āśrama (hermitage)
• Ahalyā-kuṇḍa (sacred pool)
• King (rājan, addressee)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse teaches that disciplined pilgrimage to sanctified places associated with great sages, coupled with ritual purity (such as bathing in a revered tīrtha), supports both spiritual elevation (parama-gati) and rightful worldly well-being (lakṣmī), aligning personal benefit with dharmic practice.

What is happening in the narrative?

The speaker instructs the king on the next stages of a tīrtha-journey: go to the beloved forest of Ṛṣi Gautama, visit his hermitage, and bathe in Ahalyā-kuṇḍa, describing the fruits of these acts—supreme attainment and prosperity.