स तु ज्येष्ठो भवेत् तस्मान् मा वादं कर्तुम् अर्हथः तद्वाक्याद् विष्णुर् अगमद् अधो ऽहं चोर्ध्वम् एव च
'He will be the elder; therefore, you should not argue.' At her words, Viṣṇu went downward and I went upward.
ततो विष्णुः शीघ्रम् एत्य ज्योतिःपार्श्व उपाविशत् अप्राप्यान्तम् अहं प्रायां दूराद् दूरतरं मुने
Then Viṣṇu quickly approached and sat beside the light; unable to reach its end, I went farther and farther, O sage.
ततः श्रान्तो निवृत्तो ऽहं द्रष्टुम् ईशं तु तं प्रभुम् तदैवं मम धीर् आसीद् दृष्टश् चान्तो मया भृशम्
Then, weary, I turned back, unable to see that Lord; yet, in my mind I thought I had truly seen the end.
अस्य देवस्य तद् विष्णोर् मम ज्यैष्ठ्यं स्फुटं भवेत् पुनश् चापि मम त्व् एवं मतिर् आसीन् महामते
'Thus, my seniority over this god Viṣṇu is clear.' Again, O wise one, this was my thought.
सत्यैर् वक्त्रैः कथं वक्ष्ये पीडितो ऽप्य् अनृतं वचः नानाविधेषु पापेषु नानृतात् पातकं परम्
How can I, with truthful mouths, speak a false word, even under pressure? Among all kinds of sins, there is none greater than falsehood.
सत्यैर् वक्त्रैर् असत्यां वा वाचं वक्ष्ये कथं त्व् इति ततो ऽहं पञ्चमं वक्त्रं गर्दभाकृतिभीषणम्
How can I, with truthful mouths, speak an untruth? So, I created a fifth mouth, terrifying in the form of a donkey.
कृत्वा तेनानृतं वक्ष्य इति ध्यात्वा चिरं तदा अब्रवं तं हरिं तत्र आसीनं जगतां प्रभुम्
Having made that, I resolved to speak a falsehood with it; after pondering for a long time, I addressed Hari, the Lord of the worlds, seated there.
अस्य चान्तो मया दृष्टस् तेन ज्यैष्ठ्यं जनार्दन ममेति वदतः पार्श्वे उभौ तौ हरिशंकरौ
'I have seen its end; therefore, Janārdana, my seniority is established.' As I spoke thus, both Hari and Śaṅkara were at my side.
एकरूपत्वम् आपन्नौ सूर्याचन्द्रमसाव् इव तौ दृष्ट्वा विस्मितो भीतश् चास्तवं ताव् उभाव् अपि ततः क्रुद्धौ जगन्नाथौ वाचं ताम् इदम् ऊचतुः
The two assumed a single form, like the sun and the moon; seeing them, I was astonished and afraid. Then, both Lords of the universe, angered, spoke these words to that speech.
दुष्टे त्वं निम्नगा भूया नानृताद् अस्ति पातकम्
'You, wicked one, become a river, for there is no sin greater than falsehood.'
ततः सा विह्वला भूत्वा नदीभावम् उपागता तद् दृष्ट्वा विस्मितो भीतस् ताम् अब्रवम् अहं तदा
Then, she became distraught and took the form of a river; seeing that, I was astonished and afraid, and I spoke to her at that time.
यस्माद् असत्यम् उक्तासि ब्रह्मवाचि स्थिता सती तस्माद् अदृश्या त्वं भूयाः पापरूपास्य् असंशयम्
Because you have spoken falsely while standing in the speech of Brahma, though you are virtuous, therefore you shall become invisible and take a sinful form, without doubt.
एतच् छापं विदित्वा तु तौ देवौ प्रणता तदा विशापत्वं प्रार्थयन्ती तुष्टाव च पुनः पुनः
Knowing this curse, those two deities then bowed down, seeking release from the curse, and praised me again and again.
ततस् तुष्टौ देवदेवौ प्रार्थितौ त्रिदशार्चितौ प्रीत्या हरिहराव् एवं वाचं वाचम् अथोचतुः
Then, pleased, the two gods of gods, worshipped by the immortals, being requested, Hari and Hara, spoke these words with affection.
गङ्गया संगता भद्रे यदा त्वं लोकपावनी तदा पुनर् वपुस् ते स्यात् पवित्रं हि सुशोभने
O auspicious one, when you join with Ganga, purifier of the worlds, then your form will be restored, for you are indeed pure and radiant.
तथेत्य् उक्त्वा सापि देवी गङ्गया संगताभवत् भागीरथी गौतमी च ततश् चापि स्वकं वपुः
Having said, 'So be it,' that goddess united with Ganga; Bhagirathi and Gautami then regained their own forms.
देवी सा व्यगमद् ब्रह्मन् देवानाम् अपि दुर्लभम् गौतम्यां सैव विख्याता नाम्ना वाणीति पुण्यदा
O Brahman, that goddess attained what is difficult even for the gods; in Gautami she is renowned by the name Vani, bestower of merit.
भागीरथ्यां सैव देवी सरस्वत्य् अभिधीयते उभयत्रापि विख्यातः संगमो लोकपूजितः
In Bhagirathi, that goddess is called Sarasvati; in both places, the confluence is famous and worshipped by the world.
सरस्वतीसंगमश् च वाणीसंगम एव च गौतम्या संगता देवी वाणी वाचा सरस्वती
The confluence of Sarasvati and the confluence of Vani—there, the goddess Vani, Sarasvati by speech, joined with Gautami.
सर्वत्र पूजितं तीर्थं तत्र वाचा शिवं प्रभुम् देवेश्वरं पूजयित्वा विशापम् अगमद् यतः
Everywhere that holy place is worshipped; there, having worshipped Shiva, the lord of speech, the curse was removed.
ब्रह्मा विधूय वाग्दौष्ट्यं स्वं च धामागमत् पुनः तस्मात् तत्र शुचिर् भूत्वा स्नात्वा तत्र च संगमे
Brahma, having cast off his fault of speech, returned again to his own abode; therefore, having become pure, one should bathe at that confluence.
वागीश्वरं ततो दृष्ट्वा तावता मुक्तिम् आप्नुयात् दानहोमादिकं किंचिद् उपवासादिकां क्रियाम्
Having seen the lord of speech there, one attains liberation; what need is there for gifts, sacrifices, or other rites such as fasting?
यः कुर्यात् संगमे पुण्ये संसारे न भवेत् पुनः एकोनविंशतिशतं तीर्थानां तीरयोर् द्वयोः नानाजन्मार्जिताशेषपापक्षयविधायिनाम्
Whoever performs rites at the holy confluence will not be reborn in the world; on both banks are one hundred and nineteen sacred places, which destroy all sins accumulated over many births.
विष्णुतीर्थम् इति ख्यातं तत्र वृत्तम् इदं शृणु मौद्गल्य इति विख्यातो मुद्गलस्य सुतो ऋषिः
That place is known as Vishnu's holy site; hear now what happened there. A sage named Maudgalya, son of Mudgala, was renowned.
तस्य भार्या तु जाबाला नाम्ना ख्याता सुपुत्रिणी पिता ऋषिस् तथा वृद्धो मुद्गलो लोकविश्रुतः
His wife was named Jabala, famed for her good children; her father was also a sage, the aged Mudgala, celebrated in the world.
तस्य भार्या तथा ख्याता नाम्ना भागीरथी शुभा स मौद्गल्यः प्रातर् एव गङ्गां स्नाति यतव्रतः
His wife was also known by the auspicious name Bhagirathi. That Maudgalya, devoted to vows, bathed in the Ganga every morning.
नित्यम् एव त्व् इदं कर्म तस्यासीन् मुनिसत्तम गङ्गातीरे कुशैर् मृद्भिः शमीपुष्पैर् अहर्निशम्
This was always his practice, O best of sages: on the bank of the Ganga, with kusa grass, clay, and Sami flowers, day and night.
गुरूदितेन मार्गेण स्वमानससरोरुहे आवाहनं नित्यम् एव विष्णोश् चक्रे स मौद्गलिः
Following the path taught by his guru, in the lotus of his own mind, Maudgalya always invoked Vishnu.
तेनाहूतस् त्वरन्न् एति लक्ष्मीभर्ता जगत्पतिः वैनतेयम् अथारुह्य शङ्खचक्रगदाधरः
Summoned by him, the Lord of Lakshmi and Master of the universe hastily arrives, mounting Garuda, bearing the conch, discus, and mace.
पूजितस् तेन ऋषिणा स मौद्गल्येन यत्नतः प्रब्रूते च कथाश् चित्रा मौद्गल्याय जगत्प्रभुः
Honored by that sage Maudgalya with great care, the Lord of the world recounts wondrous stories to Maudgalya.