Shloka 17
Gārhasthya-dharma: Vāsudeva–Pṛthivī-saṃvāda
Householder Duties and Daily Offerings
पितृन् संतर्पयित्वा तु बलिं कुर्याद् विधानतः । वैश्वदेवं ततः कुर्यात् पश्चाद् ब्राह्यगवाचनम्
pitṝn santarpayitvā tu baliṁ kuryād vidhānataḥ | vaiśvadevaṁ tataḥ kuryāt paścād brāhyagavācanam ||
Nachdem man zunächst die Pitṛs—die Ahnengeister—durch die vorgeschriebenen Opfergaben gesättigt hat, soll man sodann das tägliche bali nach rechter Vorschrift darbringen. Danach vollziehe man den Vaiśvadeva-Ritus und schreite schließlich zur Rezitation und Unterweisung in der heiligen brahmanischen Lehre—so ordnet man die Pflichten des Hauses gemäß dem Dharma.
वायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches the proper sequence of a householder’s daily dharmic duties: first honor the ancestors (Pitṛ-yajña/tarpaṇa), then make the prescribed bali offering, then perform the Vaiśvadeva rite, and finally engage in sacred recitation/teaching—showing that ritual gratitude, orderly conduct, and scriptural learning together sustain dharma.
Vāyudeva is instructing on household religious observances within the Anuśāsana Parva’s broader discourse on dharma. Here he outlines a step-by-step routine of offerings and study, emphasizing correct procedure (vidhānataḥ) and the ethical priority of honoring ancestors and the divine before turning to scriptural recitation.