Aśvayūpa

Aśvayūpa · aśva-yūpa, “the post of the horse-yajña”

Aśvayūpa is one of the human beings who created tīrthas, holy places of pilgrimage. The tīrthas made by such humans are called the Mānusha tīrthas.

At the opening of the Gautamī Māhātmya, Brahmā tells the munis how Nārada once asked him about the tīrthas, and how he answered by naming their kinds: the Āsura tīrthas, connected with asuras; the Ārsha tīrthas, frequented by ṛshis; the Mānusha tīrthas, made by humans; and the Daiva tīrthas, which arose by themselves. The Mānusha tīrthas are those created by Ambarīsha, Hariścandra, Nahusha, Rāma, Kuru, Kanakhala, Bharata, Sagara, Aśvayūpa, Nāciketa and Vṛshākapi, the suppressor of foes. They created these tīrthas for their own fame, benefit and prosperity.

Brahmā says that merely by knowing the different tīrthas a man is released from all pāpas (sins).

Source: Brahma Purāṇa, Gautamī Māhātmya, Chapter 1

Sources

• Brahma Purāṇa, Gautamī Māhātmya, Chapter 1