Virajā (Source of the Ekavīrā)
Virajā · vi-rajā, “free of stain”
Virajā has other meanings too: see all meanings of Virajā.
Virajā is the holy place on the great mountain Sahya, to the south of the Vindhya, where the river Ekavīrā arose. Brahmā tells Nārada of it in the Gautamī Māhātmya of the Brahma Purāṇa, as he begins the account of the tīrtha Kuśatarpaṇa. Its name means the stainless, free of every pāpa (sin), and Brahmā says that no one can describe its greatness.
On the Sahya mountain
Brahmā says that the tīrtha known in the worlds as Kuśatarpaṇa and Praṇītā-saṅgama gives both bhukti (enjoyment in the world) and mukti (moksha), and that he will tell its features, which are auspicious and take away pāpa. On the southern side of the Vindhya stands the great mountain Sahya. From the feet of the Sahya arose the Godāvarī, the Bhīmarathī and other rivers. The place where the Ekavīrā arose is Virajā, and its greatness cannot be told by anyone.
Then Brahmā asks Nārada to listen with attention to what happened at the holy spot on that mountain. It is “the secret of secrets”, auspicious, declared by the Vedas themselves, and unknown even to the ṛshis, devas, pitṛs and asuras. Brahmā tells it for Nārada’s delight, and hearing it gives every cherished thing. What follows is the account of Brahmā’s own first yajña of creation, from which the river Praṇītā and the tīrtha Kuśatarpaṇa arose.
Source: Brahma Purāṇa, Gautamī Māhātmya, Chapter 91
Sources
- Brahma Purāṇa, Gautamī Māhātmya, Chapter 91