Shloka 120
युधिष्ठिरस्य अर्जुनप्रेषण-युक्तिवर्णनम् | Yudhiṣṭhira’s Rationale for Sending Arjuna and Request to Dhaumya
तत्र कोटिस्तु तीर्थानां विश्रुता भरतर्षभ । कूर्मरूपेण राजेन्द्र हासुरेण दुरात्मना
tatra koṭis tu tīrthānāṁ viśrutā bharatarṣabha | kūrmarūpeṇa rājendra hāsureṇa durātmanā | puṇḍarīkam avāpnoti viṣṇulokaṁ ca gacchati ||
在那里，噢婆罗多族中的雄杰，有一处著名的“圣渡群”（tīrtha-koṭi），汇聚无数圣地渡口。噢国王，名为哈苏罗（Hāsura）的恶阿修罗曾化作龟形，掠夺并携走那圣地群。全能的毗湿奴（Viṣṇu）见此，便救护并复归那神圣之所。噢由提施提罗（Yudhiṣṭhira），当在此 tīrtha-koṭi 中沐浴；如此行者将得“莲华祭”（Puṇḍarīka）之功德，并往生毗湿奴之界。
घुलस्त्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
Sacred places and righteous practices (like bathing at a tīrtha) are protected by divine order; sincere pilgrimage performed with faith yields great merit, comparable to major sacrifices, and leads toward higher spiritual destinations (here, Viṣṇuloka).
A notorious Asura named Hāsura, disguised as a tortoise, was stealing or dragging away a renowned cluster of pilgrimage sites; Viṣṇu intervenes to restore it, and the speaker instructs Yudhiṣṭhira that bathing there grants the merit of the Puṇḍarīka sacrifice and leads to Viṣṇu’s abode.