IGi Earn Narayan — Translation of the Ayodhya-Mdhatmya, [No. 2, 



Chapter XXII. 



Mahadeva said, " O Goddess, a man is sure to get salvation at Gopir- 

 tar ; for there is no other sacred place equal to it. Those who bathe here 

 go to heaven. Its pilgrimage is performed on the fifteenth of Kartika. 

 Indra, the other gods, and all the sacred spots on earth come and re- 

 side here during the month of Kartika, and are cleansed of their sins. 

 Bathing, giving alms, according to one's means, worship and sacrifice, all 

 bestow everlasting fruits. The sacred places being filled with the sins of 

 the people, remain restless till Kartika, when they repair to it and bathing 

 here, become all pure. To please Vishnu, one should feed Brahmans, and 

 give a cow and grain in due form to a proper person. Lighting lamps here 

 with ghi or oil of sesamum confers the same advantages as bathing at 

 Kurukshetra during a solar, or in the Narbada, during a lunar, eclipse, and 

 weighing oneself against gold. He who gives a bead of gold here, goes to 

 paradise, and whoever performs a sacrifice and bestows grain upon the poor, 

 is freed from the transmigration of soul. Burning oneself in the fire, leads 

 one to the place of Vishnu. Those who fast here never return to this 

 world. The Sarayu flows from the eyes of Narayana : who can describe its 

 benefits ? The Ganges rises from the feet of Hari, and a man obtains the 

 fruit of an As'vamedha at every step which he takes towards it. What 

 then shall I say of the Sarayu where Ramachandra daily bathes ?" 



Then Parvati said, " O S'ankara, I have heard that Rajas Harischan- 

 dra and Rukmangada carried Ayodhya to heaven ; tell me how." S'ankara 

 answered, " There was a Raja named Harischandra in the Treta cycle, a 

 descendant of Iksvaku, celebrated for piety. Draught never visited his 

 country, and no plague ever occurred in his land. The young did not die, 

 the people were not irreligious, they were ever happy, and did no injustice 

 for the sake of getting rich. This was the cause why he carried Ayodhya 

 to heaven. Another Raja, Rukmangada, of the same line, had a son named 

 Dharmangada, very learned, brave, and obedient to his father. He kept the 

 fast of the eleventh day of every month in due manner at the advice of 

 Narada, and went to the regions of Vishnu with all his subjects. Rukman- 

 gada, mounting a celestial car, also went to that place." 



Chapter XXIII. 



Then Parvati asked Mahadeva to describe the remaining sacred places 

 at Ayodhya. Mahadeva said, " West of Suraj-kunda is D u r g a - k u n d a. 

 Bathing here and giving alms and feeding the Brahmans, make a man 

 obtain his wishes. The eight-armed goddess is stationed here. The pilo-ri- 

 mage is performed on every Tuesday and the eighth of every month. 



" South-east of Suraj-kund is Nuragra m a, by bathing in which all 

 sins are destroyed. South of it lies Narayan a -grama, which has a 



