Canto 2 -
Ayodhyā-kāṇḍa
Chapter 89: Bharata Crosses Gaṅgā and Reaches Prayāga
Text 2.89.20
सा पुण्या ध्वजिनी गङ्गा दाशैः सन्तारिता स्वयम्।
मैत्रे मुहूर्ते प्रययौ प्रयागवनमुत्तमम्॥
sā puṇyā dhvajinī gaṅgā dāśaiḥ santāritā svayam
maitre muhūrte prayayau prayāga-vanam uttamam
sā puṇyā = the purified; dhvajinī = army; gaṅgā = across Gaṅgā; dāśaiḥ = by the fishermen; santāritā = was ferried; svayam = themselves; maitre = of Maitra; muhūrte = at the auspicious muhurta; prayayau = [and] it reached; prayāga-vanam = forest of Prayāga; uttamam = the excellent.
The purified army was ferried across Gaṅgā by the fishermen themselves [and] it reached the excellent forest of Prayāga at the auspicious muhūrta of Maitra.
The army became purified by taking bath in Gaṅgā and so on. It was ferried by by the fishermen themselves—no one ordered them to do so. [A day and night is made up of twelve hours of day and twelve hours of night.] A day is made up of fifteen muhūrtas, each of which is made up of two ghaṭikās 5. It is implied that they reached the forest of Prayāga within six ghaṭikās [from sunrise].1 The auspicious muhūrta of Maitra is specifically mentioned here because Bharata and others received unbounded refreshment through [Bharadvāja’s] hospitality [later that day].2