पर्वताख्यं महागुह्यं मणिकर्ण्यमनुत्तमम् । घटोत्कचं तीर्थवरं श्रीतीर्थं च पितामहम्
There is the great and secret Parvata tirtha, the peerless Manikarnika, the eminent Ghatotkacha tirtha, and the revered Pitamaha tirtha.
गंगातीर्थं तु देवेशं ययातेस्तीर्थमुत्तमम् । कापिलं चैव सोमेशं ब्रह्मतीर्थमनुत्तमम्
There is the Gangatirtha, the Lord of the gods, the excellent Yayati tirtha, the Kapila tirtha, the Somesha tirtha, and the matchless Brahma tirtha.
तत्र लिंगं पुराणीयं स्थातुं ब्रह्मा यथागतः । तदानीं स्थापयामास विष्णुस्तल्लिंगमैश्वरम्
There, the ancient linga was established as Brahma had come; at that time, Vishnu installed that divine linga.
तत्र स्नात्वा समागम्य ब्रह्मा प्रोवाच तं हरिम् । मयानीतमिदं लिंगं कस्मात्स्थापितवानसि
Having bathed there and assembled, Brahma spoke to Hari: 'This linga was brought by me—why have you installed it?'
तमाह विष्णुस्त्वत्तोऽपि रुद्रे भक्तिर्दृढा मम । तस्मात्प्रतिष्ठितं लिगं नाम्ना तव भविष्यति
Vishnu replied to him: 'My devotion to Rudra is even firmer than yours; therefore, I established the linga, and it will bear your name.'
भूतेश्वरं तथा तीर्थं तीर्थं धर्मसमुद्भवम् । गंधर्वतीर्थं सुशुभं वाह्नेयं तीर्थमुत्तमम्
There is the Bhuteshvara tirtha, the Dharma-origin tirtha, the auspicious Gandharva tirtha, and the excellent Vahneya tirtha.
दौर्वासिकं व्योमतीर्थं चंद्रतीर्थं युधिष्ठिर । चिंतांगदेश्वरं तीर्थं पुण्यं विद्याधरेश्वरम्
There are the Daurvasika, Vyoma tirtha, Chandra tirtha, O Yudhishthira, the meritorious Chintangadeshvara tirtha, and the Vidyadhara Ishvara tirtha.
केदारतीर्थमुग्राख्यं कालंजरमनुत्तमम् । सारस्वतं प्रभासं च रुद्रकर्णह्रदं शुभम्
There is the Kedara tirtha called Ugra, the peerless Kalanjara, Sarasvata, Prabhasa, and the auspicious Rudrakarna lake.
कोकिलाख्यं महातीर्थं तीर्थं चैव महालयम् । हिरण्यगर्भं गोप्रेक्षं तीर्थं चैवमनुत्तमम्
There is the great Kokila tirtha, the Mahalaya tirtha, the Hiranyagarbha, the Gopreksha tirtha, and the matchless tirtha.
उपशांतं शिवं चैव व्याघ्रेश्वरमनुत्तमम् । त्रिलोचनं महातीर्थं लोकार्कं चोत्तराह्वयम्
There is the peaceful Upashanta tirtha, the auspicious Shiva tirtha, the peerless Vyaghreshvara, the great Trilochana tirtha, and the Uttara-akhya Lokarka.
कपालमोचनं तीर्थं ब्रह्महत्याविनाशनम् । शुक्रेश्वरं महापुण्यमानंदपुरमुत्तमम्
The Kapālamocana tīrtha destroys the sin of killing a Brahmin; Śukreśvara is supremely meritorious, and Ānandapura is excellent.
एवमादीनि तीर्थानि वाराणस्यां स्थितानि वै । न शक्यं विस्तराद्वक्तुं कल्पकोटिशतैरपि
Such holy places as these are established in Vārāṇasī; even in hundreds of millions of aeons, they cannot be fully described.
इति श्रीपाद्मे महापुराणे स्वर्गखंडे वाराणसीमाहात्म्ये सप्तत्रिंशोऽध्यायः
Thus ends the thirty-seventh chapter, entitled 'The Greatness of Vārāṇasī', in the Svarga-khaṇḍa of the glorious Padma Purāṇa.
नारद उवाच- वाराणस्याश्च माहात्म्यं तस्यां तीर्थानि च प्रभो । कथितानि समासेन तीर्थान्यन्यानि संशृणु
Nārada said: O Lord, the greatness of Vārāṇasī and its holy places have been briefly told; now hear of other tīrthas as well.
ततो गयां समासाद्य ब्रह्मचारी समाहितः । अश्वमेधमवाप्नोति गमनादेव भारत
Then, reaching Gayā with focused mind, a celibate attains the fruit of an Aśvamedha sacrifice merely by going there, O Bhārata.
यत्राक्षय्यवटो नाम त्रिषु लोकेषु विश्रुतः । पितॄणां तत्र वै दत्तमक्षयं भवति प्रभो
There is the imperishable fig tree, renowned in the three worlds; whatever is offered there to the ancestors, O Lord, becomes inexhaustible.
महानद्यामुपस्पृश्य तर्पयेत्पितृदेवताः । अक्षयान्प्राप्नुयाल्लोकान्कुलं चैव समुद्धरेत्
After bathing in the great river, one should satisfy the ancestors and gods; one attains inexhaustible worlds and uplifts one's lineage.
ततो ब्रह्मसरो गच्छेद्ब्रह्मारण्योपसेवितम् । पुंडरीकमवाप्नोति प्रभातमिव शर्वरी
Then one should go to Brahmasaras, frequented by Brahmā in the forest; one attains Puṇḍarīka, as night gives way to dawn.
सरसि ब्रह्मणा तत्र यूपश्रेष्ठः समुच्छ्रितः । यूपं प्रदक्षिणं कृत्वा वाजपेयफलं लभेत्
There, in the lake of Brahmā, the foremost sacrificial post is raised; by circumambulating the post, one obtains the fruit of a Vājapeya sacrifice.
ततो गच्छेत राजेंद्र धेनुकं लोकविश्रुतम् । एकारात्रोषितो राजन्प्रयच्छेत्तिलधेनुकाम्
Then, O king, one should go to Dhenuka, famed in the world; if one stays there for a single night, O king, one should offer a sesame cow.
सर्वपापविशुद्धात्मा सोमलोकं व्रजेद्ध्रुवम् । तत्र चिह्नं महाराज अद्यापि हि न संशयः
With all sins cleansed, the soul surely goes to the world of Soma; even today, O great king, the sign remains—there is no doubt.
कपिला सहवत्सा वै पर्वते विचरत्युतः । सवत्सायाः पदान्यस्या दृश्यंतेऽद्यापि भारत
A tawny cow with her calf indeed roams on the mountain; even today, O Bhārata, the footprints of that cow with her calf are seen.
तेषूपस्पृश्य राजेंद्र पदेषु नृपसत्तम । यत्किंचिदशुभं पापं तत्प्रणश्यति भारत
By bathing at those footprints, O best of kings, whatever inauspicious or sinful thing there is, O Bhārata, that is destroyed.
ततो गृध्रवटं गच्छेत्स्थानं देवस्य शूलिनः । स्नायात्तु भस्मना तत्र संगम्य वृषभध्वजम्
Then one should go to Gṛdhravaṭa, the place of the god with the trident; there, after bathing in ashes and meeting the bull-bannered one, one should bathe.
ब्राह्मणेन भवेच्चीर्णं व्रतं द्वादशवार्षिकम् । इतरेषां तु वर्णानां सर्वपापं प्रणश्यति
For a Brāhmaṇa, the twelve-year vow is to be performed there; for people of other classes, all sins are destroyed.
गच्छेत तत उद्यंतं पर्वतं गीतनादितम् । सावित्रं तु पदं तत्र दृश्यते भरतर्षभ
Then one should go to the rising mountain, resounding with song; there, O best of Bhāratas, the Sāvitra step is seen.
तत्र संध्यामुपासीत ब्राह्मणः संशितव्रतः । उपास्ताहि भवेत्संध्या तेन द्वादशवार्षिकी
There, a Brāhmaṇa of firm vows should perform the evening worship; by worshipping there, the twelve-year evening rite is fulfilled.
योनिद्वारं च तत्रैव विश्रुतं भरतर्षभ । तत्राभिगम्य मुच्येत पुरुषो योनिसंकटात्
There too is the renowned 'womb-gate', O best of Bhāratas; by approaching there, a person is freed from the distress of the womb.
शुक्लकृष्णावुभौ पक्षौ गयायां यो वसेन्नरः । पुनात्यासप्तमं राजन्कुलं नास्त्यत्र संशयः
O King, a man who dwells at Gayā during both the bright and dark fortnights purifies up to the seventh generation of his family—there is no doubt about this.
एष्टव्या बहवः पुत्रा यद्यप्येको गयां व्रजेत् । यजेत वाश्वमेधेन नीलं वा वृषमुत्सृजेत्
Though many sons are to be desired, if even one goes to Gayā, or performs an Aśvamedha sacrifice, or releases a blue bull, he fulfills the duty.