156 Ram Narayan — Translation of the Ayodliya-Mahatmya. [No. 2, 



ing piety.' Then Bhagavan answered, ' May you have unchangeable devo- 

 tion and obtain salvation. This place shall be named after you. You are 

 very fortunate.' Having said so, Bhagavan struck the ground, and water 

 gushed forth. He then washed the Brahman with the water, and made him 

 passionless, free from sin, and healthy. Hence, Goddess, this holy place is 

 called C h a k r a - 1 i r t h a. It is the destroyer of sins and the bestower of 

 blessings. He who bathes here, goes to the regions of Vishnu. Bhagavan 

 again said to Vis'va-s'arma, ' O Brahman, station the image of Vishnu-hari 

 here,' and it was done. Its pilgrimage is performed from the tenth of the 

 light half of Kartika to the end of that month. Bathing at this place ab- 

 solves men of all their sins and leads them to paradise. The Pitris (deceased 

 ancestors) of a man who here performs the Pitri Sraddha go to heaven. 

 This is beyond question. By bathing, giving alms in proportion to his 

 means, and visiting Vishnu, a man obtains salvation." 



" O Goddess, I have described the advantages of Chakra-tirtha ; north- 

 east of it is V a s' i s h t h a - k u n d, the destroyer of sins. Here the great 

 devotee and saint Vas'ishtha and his "chaste wife Arundhati remain. The 

 benefits of bathing at this place are great. A man should here worship 

 Vamadeva, Vas'ishtha, and Arundhati in particular, and bathe and give alms. 

 Its pilgrimage is performed on the 5th of the light half of Bhadra." 



Chapter XVI. 



S'ankara continued, " Goddess, north-east of Vas'ishtha-kund is 

 Sagara-kund, the fulfiller of all our wishes. Bathing and giving alms 

 here confers great blessings. Whatever benefit is gained by bathing in the 

 sea on the last day of a month, is obtained by bathing at this place on any 

 eastday. Its pilgrimage takes place on the last day of Kartika. By bathing 

 and giving alms here, one obtains all desires and is freed from all sins. 



" North-east of Sagara is the charming Brahma-kund, built by 

 Vishnu, who lives there and once performed a sacrifice in due form. He 

 bathed with the gods in the kund, which was filled with clear water, lotuses, 

 water-lilies, and covered with geese, karandavas,* and chakravaka, and sur- 

 rounded with beautiful trees. On seeing this, the gods asked Brahma, with 

 folded hands, ' Pitamaha, (father of all) tell us of the advantages of the 

 kund. Brahma replied, ' Listen attentively. The kund contains various 

 fruit-trees. By bathing here, a man is released from all sins, obtains a 

 handsome shape, and riding on a vehicle, yoked with geese, goes to the re- 

 gions of Brahma, where he remains, like me, till the general destruction. 

 Bathing and giving alms here, gives the same benefits as the performance 

 of an As'va-medha ; consequently a man should bathe, give alms, worship, 

 and sacrifice at this place ; for this destroys capital crimes and confers ever- 



* A kind of duck. 



