Mahabharata Vol. 3 (Penguin Translated Texts) (9 page)

‘“Pulastya said, ‘On going to the supreme tirtha of Samvedya in the evening, and touching the water there, there is no
doubt that a man obtains knowledge. O king! Then going to Louhitya, the tirtha created through Rama’s favour in ancient times, one obtains a lot of gold.
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On going to Karatoya
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and fasting there for three nights, following the rites laid down by the grandfather,
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a man obtains a horse sacrifice. O Indra among kings! On going to the confluence of the Ganga with the ocean, the learned have said that one obtains ten times a horse sacrifice. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! O king! If one goes to the island that is on the other bank of the Ganga,
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bathing and fasting there for three nights, all one’s desires are satisfied. Then one should go to the river Vaitarani,
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the cleanser of all sins. Going to the tirtha known as Viraja, one shines like the moon. Sanctifying one’s own lineage, one is cleansed of all sins. A man makes his own lineage pure and obtains the fruits of ten thousand cows.
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On dwelling at the confluence of the Shona and the Jyotirathi, pure and restrained, and worshipping the ancestors and the gods, one obtains the fruits of agnishtoma. O descendant of the Kuru lineage! On touching the water at Vamshagulma, the source of the Shona and the Narmada,
²⁷⁷
one obtains the fruits of a horse sacrifice. O lord of men! On going to Rishabha tirtha in Kosala and fasting there for three nights, a man obtains a horse sacrifice. On going to Kosala and touching the waters at Kala tirtha, there is no doubt that one obtains the fruits of eleven bulls.
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Performing ablutions in Pushpavati, and fasting for three
nights, a man obtains the fruits of one thousand cows and also rescues his lineage. Then bathing in Badarika tirtha,
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controlled in mind, one obtains a long life and goes to the world of heaven.

‘“‘Then, going to Mahendra, frequented by Jamadagni’s son, and bathing at Rama tirtha,
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a man obtains the fruits of a horse sacrifice. O descendant of the Kuru lineage! O King! On going to Matanga’s Kedara
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and bathing there, a man obtains the fruits of one thousand cows. On going to Mount Shri
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and touching the water on the banks of the river, one obtains a horse sacrifice and goes to the world of heaven. The immensely radiant Mahadeva dwells in great delight on Mount Shri with the goddess, together with Brahma and the thirty gods. On bathing at the lake of the gods there, pure and restrained in mind, one obtains a horse sacrifice and goes to supreme success. On going to Mount Rishabha in Pandya,
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worshipped by the gods, one obtains a horse sacrifice and finds delight in the vault of the sky.
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One should then go to Kaveri,
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frequented by masses of apsaras. O king! On bathing there, a man obtains the fruits of one thousand cows. Then one should bathe in Kanyatirtha,
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on the shores of the ocean. O Indra among kings! On bathing there, one is freed from all sins. Then one should go to Gokarna,
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renowned in the three worlds. O Indra among kings! It is in the middle of the ocean and is worshipped by all the worlds. Brahma, the gods, the
rishis, the ascetics, the
bhuta
s,
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the yakshas, the
pishacha
s,
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the kinnaras, the great nagas, the siddhas, the charanas, the gandharvas, humans, the pannagas, rivers, oceans and mountains worship Uma’s consort there. On worshipping Ishana there and fasting for three nights, a man obtains a horse sacrifice and attains the status of a Ganapati. A man who lives there for twelve nights becomes pure of soul. Then one should go to the region of Gayatri, famous in the three worlds.
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After staying there for three nights, one obtains the fruits of one thousand cows. O lord of men! For brahmanas, something special can be witnessed there. O king! When one born of mixed varna recites the gayatri there, it becomes metrical and musical.
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‘“‘On going to the pond of the brahmana rishi Samvarta, difficult of access, one obtains personal beauty and great fortune. On going to Venna
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and worshipping the ancestors and the gods, a man obtains a celestial chariot drawn by peacocks and swans. Then one goes to Godavari, always frequented by the siddhas, obtaining a cow sacrifice and attaining Vasuki’s world. On bathing at the confluence of Venna, one obtains the fruits of a horse sacrifice. On bathing at the confluence of Varada,
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one obtains the fruits of one thousand cows. On going to Brahma’s region and dwelling there for three nights, a man obtains the fruits of one thousand cows and goes to the world of heaven. On going to Kushaplavana, celibate and controlled in mind, and bathing and living there for three nights, one obtains the fruits of a horse sacrifice. Then one should go to the beautiful lake of the gods, the source of the waters of the Krishna
and the Venna.
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O king! O descendant of the Bharata lineage! Bathing in the lake known as Jatimatra and in the hermitage of the maiden, where the king of the gods performed one hundred sacrifices and went to heaven, one obtains one hundred agnishtomas from the act of merely going there. On bathing at the lake of all the gods, one obtains the fruits of one thousand cows. On bathing in the lake known as Jatimatra, a man can recollect his earlier lives. Then one should go the immensely pure Payoshni, supreme among rivers.
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Worshipping the ancestors and the gods, one will obtain the fruits of one thousand cows. O great king! O descendant of the Bharata lineage! On going to the Dandaka forest and touching the waters there, one obtains the fruits of one thousand cows as soon as one has bathed there. On going to the hermitage of Sharabhanga and the great-souled Shukra, a man never confronts any difficulty and rescues his lineage. On going to Shurparaka, frequented by Jamadagni’s son and bathing in Rama’s tirtha, a man obtains a lot of gold.
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On bathing in Saptagodavari,
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restrained and controlled in diet, one obtains great merits and goes to the world of the gods. Restrained and controlled in diet, one treads the path of the gods, and a man thus obtains the merits of a divine sacrifice.

‘“‘One goes to the Tungaka forest, celibate and in control of one’s senses. In ancient times, the rishi Sarasvata had taught the Vedas there. The Vedas were lost. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! Seated on the upper garments of the maharshis, the son of the sage Angiras taught them and pronounced the syllables of ‘OM’, accurately and as they should be uttered.
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Immediately, everything
that had been learnt before returned to memory. The rishis, the gods, Varuna, Agni, Prajapati, the god Hari Narayana, Mahadeva and the illustrious grandfather
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together with the immensely radiant other gods, appointed the immensely radiant Bhrigu as a priest for their sacrifice there. In accordance with the prescribed rites and in accordance with the prescribed rituals, and for the sake of the sages, the lord
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once again invoked and worshipped the fire. Satisfied with their shares, the gods left for the three worlds and the sages went where they wished. O best of kings! When one enters Tungaka, whether one is a man or a woman, all one’s sins are destroyed. O king! If a wise one dwells there for a month, controlled and restrained in diet, one goes to Brahma’s world and saves one’s lineage. On going to Medhavika and satisfying the ancestors and the gods, one obtains agnishtoma and memory and intellect. There is the peak named Kalanjara, renowned in the world.
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On bathing in the lake of the gods there, one obtains the fruits of one thousand cows. O king! There is no doubt that a man who purifies his soul in Mount Kalanjara obtains greatness in the world of heaven. O lord of the earth! Then one goes to Mandakini, the cleanser of all sins, in Chitrakuta, best among the supreme of mountains.
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On performing one’s ablutions there and worshipping the ancestors and the gods, one obtains a horse sacrifice and goes to the supreme objective.

‘“‘O Indra among kings! Then one should go to the supreme region of Bhartri. O king! The god Mahasena
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is always established there. A man who bathes in Kotitirtha, obtains the fruits of one thousand cows. After circumambulating it, one should go to Jyeshthasthana. On going to Mahadeva, one becomes as resplendent as the moon. O great king! O bull among the Bharata lineage! O Yudhishthira!
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There is a famous well there and the four oceans reside in it. O Indra among kings! On touching the waters there and circumambulating it, pure and controlled in soul, a man goes to the supreme objective. O best among the Kuru lineage. Then one should go to the great Shringaverapura. O great king! In ancient times, Rama, Dasharatha’s son, crossed there.
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A man who bathes in the Ganga there, celibate and controlled, is washed of all sin and attains a horse sacrifice. O lord of men! On going to Mahadeva and worshipping and circumambulating him, one attains the status of a Ganapati.

‘“‘O Indra among kings! One should then go to Prayaga, praised by the rishis. There dwell Brahma and the other gods, the directions and the lords of the directions, the lords of the worlds, the sadhyas, the
nairrita
s,
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the ancestors, the supreme rishis with Sanatkumara at their head, the other brahmarshis led by Angiras, the nagas, the
suparna
s,
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the siddhas, the
chakrachara
s,
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the rivers, the oceans, the gandharvas, the apsaras and the illustrious Hari, worshipped by Prajapati. There are three pits of fire and through their middle, Jahnavi,
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worshipped among all the tirthas, flows out of Prayaga. The goddess who is Tapana’s daughter is famous in the three worlds.
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The Yamuna flows with the Ganga, the purifier of the world. The region between the Ganga and the Yamuna is known as the loins of the earth. The learned sages know that Prayaga is the supreme spot in these loins. Prayaga, Pratishthana, Kambala, Ashvatara and the tirtha of Bhogavati are known as Prajapati’s altars. O Yudhishthira!
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The Vedas and sacrifices become personified there. Rishis, rich in austerities, worship Prajapati there. O king! The gods and chakracharas worship him with sacrifices. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! There is no other place as sacred as this. O lord! Prayaga’s power is greater than that of all the tirthas. Even if a man hears of this tirtha, or chants its name, or obtains a bit of its clay, he is freed from sins. He who performs his ablutions at the confluence, strict in his vows, obtains the sacred fruits of royal and horse sacrifices. This sacrificial ground is worshipped even by the gods. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! Even if a little bit is given there, it becomes great. O son! Let not the words of the Vedas or the sayings of the world dissuade you from your intention of dying in Prayaga. O descendant of the Kuru lineage! It is said that there are sixty crore and ten thousand tirthas there. From merely bathing at the confluence of the Ganga and the Yamuna, one obtains all the merits of a truthful person learned in the four Vedas. Vasuki’s supreme tirtha named Bhogavati is there.
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On performing ablutions there, one obtains a horse sacrifice. O descendant of the Kuru lineage! On the Ganga there is the tirtha known as Hamsaprapatana,
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famous in the three worlds, and Dashashvamedhika.
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O great king! The region where the Ganga is, is fit for hermitages. The region along the banks of the Ganga is the place where success can be obtained. This truth should only be recited into the ears of brahmanas, righteous ones, one’s son, well-wishers, disciples and dependents. This brings dharma. This brings sanctity. This brings purity. This brings happiness. This brings heaven. This brings beauty. This brings supreme purification. This is the secret of the maharshis, this is the cleanser of all sins. By learning this among brahmanas, one is freed from all blemishes.

‘“‘He who hears about the eternal sanctity of the tirthas, will always be pure. He will be able to remember his earlier births and will find delight in the vault of the sky.
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Some of the tirthas recounted are
easy of access, others difficult of access. But if one wishes to visit all the tirthas, one should go to the latter in one’s mind. In a desire to perform good deeds, the Vasus, the Sadhyas, the Adityas, the Maruts, the Ashvins and the rishis, who are equal to the gods, have gone there. O Kouravya! Good in vows and controlled, and according to the precepts, you must also go to the sacred tirthas and increase your merits. Those who are learned, those who are honest and those who have insight are able to reach these tirthas because of their virtue, their purity, their belief and their learning of the sacred texts. One who does not observe vows, one who has not cleansed his soul, one who is not pure, or one who is a thief, cannot bathe in these tirthas. O Kouravya! Nor can a man whose mind is crooked. You have always been good in conduct. You have always had insight on dharma and artha. O son! You have saved your fathers and all your ancestors. O king! The gods, with Brahma leading them, together with the masses of rishis, have always been satisfied by your dharma and your knowledge of dharma. You are equal to Vasava.
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You will attain the world of the Vasus. O Bhishma! Your deeds will be great and you will obtain eternal fame on earth.’”

‘Narada said, “Having spoken these words and taking his
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leave, the illustrious rishi Pulastya, pleased and in a delighted frame of mind, immediately disappeared. Bhishma, tiger among the Kuru lineage and with insight about the import of the sacred texts, travelled throughout the earth on Pulastya’s words. He who travels throughout the earth according to these instructions, after his death, obtains the fruits of one hundred horse sacrifices. O Partha!
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According to supreme dharma, you will obtain eight times those merits. Because you will lead the rishis there, your fruits will be eight times. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! Those tirthas are infested by masses of rakshasas. O descendant of the Kuru lineage! No one except you can go there. He who awakes in the morning and recites this
account of all the tirthas, as told by the
devarshi
,
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is freed from all sins. The foremost among the rishis—Valmiki, Kashyapa, Atreya, Koundinya, Vishvamitra, Goutama, Asita-Devala, Markandeya, Galava, Bharadvaja, Vasishtha, the sage Uddalaka, Shounaka and his son, Vyasa who is supreme among those who meditate, Durvasa who is the best of sages and the great ascetic Galava
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—all these supreme rishis, rich in austerities, are waiting for you. O great king! Go and visit the tirthas and meet them. The immensely radiant devarshi named Lomasha will come to you and you must travel with him. O one learned in dharma! You can go to the tirthas with me too. You will obtain great fame, as did King Mahabhisha.
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O tiger among the Kuru lineage! Like Yayati who had dharma in his soul and like King Pururava, you will also blaze with your dharma. Like King Bhagiratha and like the famous Rama, you will also shine among all the kings, like the one with the rays.
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Like Manu, like Ikshvaku, like the immensely famous Puru and like the immensely energetic Vainya, you will also be famous. Just as in earlier times, the slayer of Vritra
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burnt down all his enemies, you will destroy your enemies and protect your subjects. O lotus-eyed one! Having obtained the earth, conquered with your dharma, you will obtain fame with your dharma, like Kartaviryarjuna.”’