O King, listen to the sacred tale of the holy places along the Gaṅgā, as revealed in the ancient scriptures. There exists a renowned shrine of Mahādeva, where, upon visiting, a person liberates not only himself but also delivers his ten ancestors, both from the past and from the future, from the bonds of suffering. Those who perform ablutions there are blessed with the fruit of the great Aśvamedha sacrifice, and they ascend to the world of the gods, dwelling there in bliss until the very dissolution of the universe. On the eastern bank of the Gaṅgā, O Bhārata, lies the famed well called Sāmudra and the celebrated Pratiṣṭhāna, known throughout the three worlds. If a celibate, having conquered his anger, remains there for three nights, his soul is purified of all sin, and he attains the same merit as the Aśvamedha sacrifice. To the north of Pratiṣṭhāna and east of the Bhāgīrathī flows the sacred tīrtha called Haṃsaprapatana, renowned in all the worlds. Merely by bathing there, one receives the fruit of the Aśvamedha sacrifice and is honored in heaven for as long as the sun and moon endure. Hear now of the blessed results for one who gives up his life at the vast and sacred Haṃsapāṇḍura, the place of Urvaśī’s delight. For sixty thousand and six hundred years, such a soul enjoys heaven together with his ancestors. There, in that celestial realm, he beholds the celestial maiden Urvaśī and is continually honored by sages, Gandharvas, and Kinnaras. Yet, when his merit is spent, he falls from heaven and, cast down to earth, is blessed with a hundred maidens resembling Urvaśī. Among thousands of women, he becomes the husband of many, and as a king, he enjoys the wealth of ten thousand villages. Awakened from sleep by the tinkling of golden anklets, and after enjoying great pleasures, he again seeks out that sacred tīrtha. Clad always in white garments, self-controlled and disciplined, he partakes of food only once a day and rules for a month. He obtains a hundred women adorned with gold, and his rule extends across the earth as far as the ocean. Endowed with wealth and grain, he becomes a constant giver. After enjoying worldly pleasures, he again attains that tīrtha. At the beautiful sandhyā bank, a celibate who has mastered his senses, who fasts and remains pure, attains Brahmaloka at twilight. Whoever gives up his life at Koṭitīrtha is honored in heaven for a thousand crores of years. When his merit is spent, he falls from heaven and is born into a wealthy family, adorned with gold, jewels, and pearls, and possessing great beauty. Journeying further to Bhogavatī, north of Vāsuki, there is another tīrtha called Daśāśvamedhaka. A man who performs abhiṣeka there gains the fruit of an Aśvamedha sacrifice, becoming wealthy, handsome, skilled, generous, and righteous. Whatever merit is gained from the study of the four Vedas, from truthfulness, and from nonviolence, that same fruit is attained simply by going there. Wherever the Gaṅgā is entered, she is equal to Kurukṣetra; but where she meets the Vindhya mountains, she is ten times greater than Kurukṣetra. Wherever the sacred Gaṅgā flows, rich with many holy fords, know that to be a field of spiritual perfection—there is no need for further deliberation. On earth, she delivers mortals; below, she delivers the serpents; and in heaven, she delivers the gods—thus she is known as the threefold path. For as many years as a person’s bones remain in the Gaṅgā, for that many thousands of years is he honored in heaven. When that merit is spent, he becomes a lord of Jambūdvīpa. Among all sacred fords, this is the supreme tīrtha; and among rivers, the Gaṅgā is the greatest, granting liberation even to the greatest sinners. The Gaṅgā is accessible everywhere, but especially difficult to reach at three places: Gaṅgādvāra, Prayāga, and the confluence with the ocean. Those who bathe and die at these places ascend to heaven and are not born again. For all beings troubled by sin and seeking a path to liberation, there is no path equal to that of the Gaṅgā. She is the purifier of the pure, the most auspicious among the auspicious, fallen from the head of the great Lord Śiva, remover of all sins. In the Kṛta age, Naimiṣa was the sacred field; in the Tretā, Puṣkara was supreme; in the Dvāpara, Kurukṣetra; but in the Kali age, the Gaṅgā excels above all. One should especially worship the Gaṅgā at Prayāga, for in the dreadful Kali age, O king, there is no other remedy. Hear again, O king, of the greatness of Prayāga. By merely hearing of its glory, one is freed from all sins—this is beyond doubt. There on the northern bank of the Gaṅgā is the sacred ford called Mānasa; by fasting there for three nights, one’s every desire is fulfilled. Whatever merit one might gain by giving cows, land, or gold, that same merit is obtained by simply remembering that ford again. Whether approaching the Gaṅgā with desire or without, if one dies there, he attains heaven and does not see hell. Awakened by the songs of the hosts of apsarases, he departs in a celestial chariot drawn by swans and cranes, and enjoys heaven for many thousands of years. When his merit is spent, he is born again in a great family, endowed with gold, jewels, and pearls. In the month of Māgha, sixty thousand sacred fords and sixty crores of rivers converge at the confluence of the Gaṅgā and Yamunā. The merit gained by gifting a hundred thousand cows is obtained by bathing for three days at Prayāga during that month. Whoever kindles the sacred fire between the Gaṅgā and Yamunā becomes free from disease and deformity, and is endowed with all five senses. Thus is the glory of the Gaṅgā and her sacred fords, O king—a path of liberation, a purifier of all, and the supreme refuge in this age of Kali.