सर्वधर्मजयी राजा विजित्येमां वसुंधराम् । आशु संस्कारयामास वाजिमेधाय पार्थिवः
The king, victorious over all dharmas, having conquered this earth, quickly prepared for the horse sacrifice.
तस्य चारयतःसोऽश्वः समुद्रे पूर्वदक्षिणे । वेला समीपेऽपहृतो भूमिं चैव प्रवेशितः
As he was conducting the rite, his horse was taken away near the eastern and southern ocean shore, and entered the earth.
स तं देशं तदा पुत्रैः खानयामास सर्वतः । नाश्वं प्रापुस्तदातेवै खन्यमाने महार्णवे
Then, with his sons, he dug everywhere in that region; but even as the great ocean was being excavated, they did not find the horse.
तत्रैकमादिपुरुषं ददृशुस्ते त्वरान्विताः । तमादिपुरुषं देवं कपिलं जगतां प्रभुम्
There, eager, they saw a primordial person; that primordial deity was Kapila, lord of the worlds.
तस्य चक्षुः समुत्पन्न वह्निना प्रतिबुध्यतः । दग्धाः षष्टि सहस्राणि चत्वारस्तेऽवशेषिताः
His gaze, awakened by fire, arose; sixty thousand were burned, and only four remained.
हृषीकेतुः सुकेतुश्च तथा धर्मरथोपरः । शूरः पंचजनश्चैव तस्य वंशकरा द्विज
Hṛṣīketu, Suketu, Dharmaratha, Śūra, and Paṃcajana—these were the progenitors of his lineage, O twice-born.
प्रादाच्च तस्मै भगवान्हरिः पंचवरान्स्वयम् । वंशं मोक्षं सुकीर्तिञ्च समुद्रं तनयं विभुः
Then the Blessed Lord Hari himself granted him five boons: release for his lineage, liberation, renowned fame, the ocean, and a son, O mighty one.
सागरत्वं च लेभेथ कर्मणा तेन तस्य वै । तमाश्वमेधिकं सोऽश्वं समुद्रादुपलब्धवान् । आजहाराश्वमेधानां शतं स च महायशाः
By that act, he attained the state of the ocean; from the ocean, he obtained the horse for the Ashvamedha sacrifice; and that illustrious one performed a hundred Ashvamedha sacrifices.
नारद उवाच- सगरस्यात्मजा वीराः कथं जाता महाबलाः । विक्रांताः षष्टिसाहस्रा विज्ञानेश्वर तद्वद
Narada said: How were the sons of Sagara, the mighty and valiant ones, born? Sixty thousand in number, O Lord of wisdom—please tell me that.
श्रीपार्वतीपतिरुवाच- द्वे पत्न्यौ सगरस्यास्तां तपसा दग्धकिल्बिषे । और्वस्ताभ्यां वरं प्रादात्तोषितो मुनिसत्तमः
The blessed Lord Parvati’s consort said: Sagara had two wives, whose sins were burned away by austerity; the eminent sage Aurva, pleased with them, granted them a boon.
षष्टिंपुत्रसहस्राणि एका वव्रे तरस्विनाम् । एका वंशधरं त्वेकं यथेष्टं वरशालिनी
One asked for sixty thousand energetic sons, and the other, endowed with the power to choose, requested a single son to continue the lineage.
तत्रैका सुषुवे तुंब्यां पुत्रान्शूरान्बहूनथ । ते तु सर्वेऽपि धात्रीभिर्वर्द्धितास्तु यथाक्रमम्
Then one gave birth to many valiant sons in a gourd, and all of them were raised by nurses, each in due order.
कपिलानां तु दुग्धानां तेषां तत्र महात्मनाम्
Those great souls were nourished there with the milk of Kapila cows.
तेनैव दुग्धयोगेन ववृधुस्ते महात्मनः । एकः पंचजनो नाम पुत्रो राजा बभूव ह
By that very nourishment from the milk, those great souls grew; and one son named Panchajana became king.
ततः पंचजनस्यासीदंशुमान्नाम वीर्यवान् । दिलीपस्तनयस्तस्य पुत्रो यस्य भगीरथः
Then Panchajana had a son named Anshuman, powerful and strong; his son was Dilipa, whose son was Bhagiratha.
यस्तु गंगासरिच्छ्रेष्ठामानयामास सुव्रतः । समुद्र मानयित्वैनां दुहितृत्वमकल्पयत्
He, steadfast in his vows, brought down the supreme river Ganga, and, honoring the ocean, established her as his daughter.
नारद उवाच- कथं गंगा समानीता किं तपस्तेन वै कृतम् । तत्सर्वं मे समाचक्ष्व सुव्रतोऽसि दयानिधे
Narada said: How was Ganga brought down? What austerity did he perform? Tell me all of this, for you are steadfast and a treasure of compassion.
महादेव उवाच- पूर्वजानां हितार्थाय गतोऽसौ हैमके गिरौ । तत्र गत्वा तपस्तप्तं वर्षाणामयुतं तदा
Mahadeva said: For the welfare of his ancestors, he went to the golden mountain; there, he performed austerity for ten thousand years.
आदिदेवः प्रसन्नोऽभूद्योऽसौ देवो निरंजनः । तेन दत्ता इयं गंगा आकाशात्समुपस्थिता
The primeval Lord, pure and gracious, was pleased; by him, this Ganga was given, who then descended from the sky.
तत्र विश्वेश्वरो देवो यत्र तिष्ठति नित्यशः । गंगां दृष्ट्वाऽगतां तेन गृहीता जाह्नवी तदा
There, where the Lord of the universe eternally resides, seeing Ganga arrive, he took her—she became known as Jahnavi.
जटाजूटे च संधार्य वर्षाणामयुतं स्थितम् । न निःसृता तदा गंगा ईशस्यैव प्रभावतः
Held in the matted locks for ten thousand years, Ganga did not flow forth then, by the power of the Lord alone.
विचारितं तदा तेन क्व गता मम मातृका । स ध्यानेन विचार्यैवं गृहीता चेश्वरेण तु
He wondered then, 'Where has my mother gone?' Reflecting in meditation, he realized she had been taken by the Lord.
ततः कैलासमगमत्स तु भगीरथो नृपः । तत्र गत्वा मुनिश्रेष्ठ ह्यकरोदुल्बणं तपः
Then King Bhagiratha went to Kailasa; arriving there, O best of sages, he performed severe austerity.
आराधितस्तदा तेन दत्तवानहमापगाम् । एकं केशं परित्यज्य दत्ता त्रिपथगा तदा
Pleased by him, I granted the river; releasing a single hair, I then gave the threefold-flowing Ganga.
स गृहीत्वा गतो गंगां पाताले यत्र पूर्वजाः । अलकनंदा तदा नाम गंगायाः प्रथमं स्मृतम्
He took her and went to the subterranean region, where the ancestors dwell; at that time, the Ganga was first known by the name Alakananda.
हरिद्वारे यदायाता विष्णुपादोदकी तदा । तदेव तीर्थं प्रवरं देवानामपि दुर्ल्लभम्
When she arrived at Haridwar, she became the water from Vishnu’s feet; that very place is the foremost holy site, rare even for the gods.
तत्तीर्थे च नरः स्नात्वा हरिं दृष्ट्वा विशेषतः । प्रदक्षिणं ये कुर्वंति न चैते दुःखभागिनः
A person who bathes at that holy site and especially beholds Hari, and those who perform circumambulation there, do not partake of suffering.
ब्रह्महत्यादि पापानां राशयः संत्यनेकशः । विलयं यांति ते सर्वे हरेर्दर्शनतः सदा
The heaps of sins such as the killing of a Brahmin and others, however many there may be, all are dissolved always by the sight of Hari.
एकदा केशवस्थाने हरिद्वारे ह्यहं गतः । तस्मात्तीर्थप्रभावाच्च जातोऽहं विष्णुरूपवान्
Once, I went to the place of Kesava at Haridwar; by the power of that holy site, I was born in the form of Vishnu.
ये गच्छंति नरश्रेष्ठास्ते वै यांति ह्यनामयम् । चतुर्भुजास्तु ते लोकाः नरा नार्यश्च सर्वशः
Those best among men who go there indeed attain freedom from affliction; their worlds are four-armed, both men and women entirely.