“Bhishma said, ’O thou of great splendour, the following enumeration of the sacred waters on the Earth was made by Angiras.  Blessed be thou, it behoveth thee to listen to it for thou shalt then earn great merit.  Once on a time, Gautama of rigid vows, approaching the great and learned Rishi Angiras endued with tranquillity of soul, while he was dwelling in a forest, questioned him, saying,—­O illustrious one, I have some doubts regarding the merits attaching to sacred waters and shrines.  So I desire to hear thee discourse on that topic.  Do thou, therefore, O ascetic, discourse to me.  What merits are earned by a person in respect of the next world, by bathing in the sacred waters on the Earth, O thou of great wisdom?  Do thou expound to me this truly and according to the ordinance.’

“Angiras said, ’A person by bathing for seven days in succession in the Chandrabhaga or the Vitasta whose waters are always seen to dance in waves, observing a fast the while, is sure to become cleansed of all his sins and endued with the merit of an ascetic.[233] The very many rivers that flowing through Kasmira, fall into the great river called Sindhu (Indus).  By bathing in these rivers one is sure to become endued with good character and to ascend to heaven after departing from this world.  By bathing in Pushkara, and Prabhasa, and Naimisha, and the ocean, and Devika, and Indramarga, and Swarnavindu, one is sure to ascend to heaven being seated on a celestial car, and filled with transports of joy at the adorations of Apsara.  By plunging in the waters of Hiranyavindu with a concentrated mind and reverencing that sacred stream, and bathing next at Kusesaya and Devendra, one becomes cleansed of all one’s sins.  Repairing to Indratoya in the vicinity of the mountains of Gandhamadana and next to Karatoya in the country called Kuranga, one should observe a fast for three days and then bathe in those sacred waters with a concentrated heart and pure body.  By doing this, one is sure to acquire the merit of a Horse-sacrifice.  Bathing in Gangadwara and Kusavarta and Vilwaka in the Nita mountains, as also in Kankhala, one is sure to become cleansed of all one’s sins and then ascend to heaven.  If one becomes a Brahmacharin and subdues one’s wrath, devotes oneself to truth and practises compassion towards all creatures, and then bathes in the Jala parda (Lake of Waters), one is sure to acquire the merit of a Horse-sacrifice.  That part where Bhagirathi-Ganga flows in a northward direction is known as the union of heaven, earth, and the nether regions.  Observing a fast for one month and bathing in that sacred Tirtha which is known to be acceptable to Maheswara, one becomes competent to behold the deities.  One who gives oblations of water unto one’s Pitris at Saptaganga and Triganga and Indramarga, obtains ambrosia for food, if one has still to undergo rebirth.  The man who in a pure state of body and mind attends to his daily Agnihotra and observes a fast for one