1875.] Earn Narayan — Translation of the Ayodlnja-Maliatmya. 1G9 



of the residence of Kurunaka ; go and bathe in it, and thou shalt be restored 

 to thy beauty, and the kund will be named after thee.' She did accordingly, 

 and became beautiful again ; the kund has, since then, been called Ghritachi- 

 kund. He who bathes in it, in due form, obtains beauty either in this life 

 or afterwards. There is no doubt about this. The pilgrimage to it is per- 

 formed on the fourteenth of the light half of Pausa. To worship Vishnu 

 here is proper. 



" West of it, at the distance of four miles, is the confluence. Ey 

 bathing in it, a man obtains the benefits of performing a thousand As 'va- 

 medhas, a hundred Vajapeyi and many Rajasuya, and of bathing at Kuru- 

 kshetra during an eclipse of the sun. He who bathes here on the twelfth, 

 fifteenth, and last days of a month, and during eclipses, undoubtedly goes to 

 heaven. The benefit of bathing at this spot on the last day of Pausa, is 

 greater than that of standing oh one leg for a thousand years, and hanging 

 with the feet upwards and head downwards for ten thousand years. Ten 

 millions of sacred places assemble here on the twelfth of every month, and 

 the fruits of visiting all of them are, therefore, obtained by once bathing here 

 on that day. Bathing at this place always confers blessings, but particu- 

 larly in Pausa, when all, whether Brahmans, Kshatriyas, Vaisyas, or even 

 bastards, obtain heaven and are freed from the transmigration of souls. 

 Lighting lamps at the confluence, in due manner, during the month of Pausa, 

 destroys the great and small sins of many births, just as fire destroys a heap 

 of cotton, and bestows long life, health, wealth, and high rank. By keep- 

 ing up the whole night, remaining pure, restraining the passions, causing fire- 

 sacrifices to be performed by Brahmans, worshipping Vishnu, hearing reli- 

 gious stories, such as the Gita, &c, which please Bhagavan ; bathing at early 

 dawn at the confluence in due form, giving gold, grain, clothes, cows, and 

 horses on the fourteenth of the light half of Pausa, one obtains salvation and 

 goes to the place of Vishnu. By bathing here, a man gains the fruits of 

 making the annual pilgrimages of all the sacred spots. In the early part 

 of the Satya Yuga, Bhagavan became incarnate in the shape of a boar, kill- 

 ed Hiranyaksha, cleared the earth of wicked men, came and lived here, 

 and built a shrine. The Gods and Gandharvas and Munis, filled with joy, 

 thus began to pray: — ' Varaha, we bow to thee, thou art the lord of the 

 deities, omnipresent, the destroyer of the fear of thy devotees, all-powerful, 

 thou killedst demons with thy teeth, perservedst religion, and gavest a pre- 

 sent to the sea.' On hearing the above, Varaha asked, ' What is your 

 request, tell me now at this place, which bestows salvation on my devotees.' 

 The Gods said, ' Bhagavan, if thou art pleased with us, grant that who- 

 ever bathes at the confluence, may be released from the dread of his enemies, 

 from separation from his friends, and from re-entering the womb of a 

 mother.' Varaha answered, ' Be it so, the confluence will be the de- 



