Shloka 15

उपवासफलात्मकविधिः — Upavāsa as Yajña-Equivalent Merit

Angiras Teaching

Devanagari script

क्षमावान्‌ रूपसम्पन्न: श्रुतवांश्वैव जायते | नानपत्यो भवेत्‌ प्राज्ञों दरिद्रो वा कदाचन

Transliteration

Aṅgirā uvāca: kṣamāvān rūpasampannaḥ śrutavāṁś caiva jāyate | nānapatyo bhavet prājño daridro vā kadācana, bhārata | yadi manuṣyaḥ pañcamī-ṣaṣṭhī-pūrṇimāsu dineṣu mana indriyāṇi ca vaśe kṛtvā ekavelaṁ bhuñjānaḥ dvitīyavelāyām upavased, sa kṣamāvān rūpavān vidvān bhavati | sa prājñaḥ puruṣaḥ kadācit na apatyahīno bhavati na ca daridraḥ ||

Translation

সে ক্ষমাশীল, রূপসম্পন্ন ও শ্রুতিমান (বিদ্বান) হয়। হে ভারত! প্রাজ্ঞ পুরুষ কখনও সন্তানহীন বা দরিদ্র হয় না। পঞ্চমী, ষষ্ঠী ও পূর্ণিমায় মন ও ইন্দ্রিয় সংযত করে একবার আহার (অন্য সময়ে উপবাস) করলে এই ফলই বলা হয়েছে।

Word by Word

• {'kṣamāvān': 'forbearing, patient, forgiving', 'rūpasampannaḥ': 'endowed with beauty/attractive form', 'śrutavān': 'learned

• one who has heard/absorbed sacred learning', 'jāyate': 'is born

• becomes', 'prājñaḥ': 'wise, discerning', 'nānapatyaḥ': 'not without offspring

• not childless', 'daridraḥ': 'poor, destitute', 'kadācana': 'ever, at any time', 'bhārata': 'O descendant of Bharata (address to the listener)', 'pañcamī': 'the 5th lunar day (tithi)', 'ṣaṣṭhī': 'the 6th lunar day (tithi)', 'pūrṇimā': 'full-moon day', 'manaḥ': 'mind', 'indriyāṇi': 'senses', 'vaśe kṛtvā': 'having brought under control', 'ekavelaṁ': 'once (in a day)

• at one mealtime', 'upavased': 'should fast

Speaker

अंगियरा उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Aṅgirā
• Bhārata

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Regular, disciplined fasting on specific lunar days—paired with restraint of mind and senses—is presented as a dharmic practice that cultivates inner virtues (forbearance) and outward/social goods (good form, learning), and is said to protect a wise person from misfortunes like childlessness and poverty.

What is happening in the narrative?

In Anuśāsana Parva’s instruction-focused setting, the sage Aṅgirā addresses “Bhārata” and recommends a concrete vrata: on pañcamī, ṣaṣṭhī, and pūrṇimā one should eat only once and fast the other time, promising ethical and worldly fruits from this self-restraint.