तौ प्रयातौ महावीर्यौ दिव्यां त्रिपथगां नदीम्।
ददृशाते ततस्तत्र सरय्वाः सङ्गमे शुभे॥
तत्राश्रमपदं पुण्यमृषीणामुग्रतेजसाम्।
बहुवर्षसहस्राणि तप्यतां परमं तपः॥
tau prayātau mahā-vīryau divyāṁ tripathagāṁ nadīm
dadṛśāte tatas tatra sarayvāḥ saṅgame śubhe
tatrāśrama-padaṁ puṇyam ṛṣīṇām ugra-tejasām
bahu-varṣa-sahasrāṇi tapyatāṁ paramaṁ tapaḥ
tau = those; prayātau = departed [from there with Viśvāmitra, and]; mahā-vīryau = two powerful ones; divyām = the divine; tripathagām = Gaṅgā; nadīm = river; dadṛśāte = saw; tataḥ = then; tatra = at its; sarayvāḥ = with the Sarayū; saṅgame = confluence; śubhe = auspicious; tatra = there; aśrama-padam = āśrama spot; puṇyam = [as well as] a pious; ṛṣīṇām = of sages; ugra-tejasām = of terrible austerity; bahu-varṣa-sahasrāṇi = for several thousands of years; tapyatām = who had executed; paramam = supreme; tapaḥ = austerity.
Those two powerful ones departed [from there with Viśvāmitra, and] then saw the divine river Gaṅgā at its auspicious confluence with the Sarayū [as well as] a pious āśrama spot there of sages of terrible austerity who had executed supreme austerity for several thousands of years.
NOTE. Śrīla Prabhupāda reveals the importance of austerities in Bhagavad-gītā 16.1-3 purport: “[Out of the various divine qualities,] tapas, or austerity, is especially meant for the retired life. One should not remain a householder throughout his whole life; he must always remember that there are four divisions of life—brahmacarya, gṛhastha, vānaprastha and sannyāsa. So after gṛhastha (householder) life, one should retire. If one lives for a hundred years, he should spend twenty-five years in student life, twenty-five in householder life, twenty-five in retired life and twenty-five in the renounced order of life. These are the regulations of the Vedic religious discipline. A man retired from household life must practice austerities of the body, mind and tongue. That is tapasya.”