Shloka 16
उपवासफलात्मकविधिः — Upavāsa as Yajña-Equivalent Merit
Angiras Teaching
यजिष्णु: पञ्चमीं षष्ठीं कुले भोजयते द्विजान् | अष्टमीमथ कौरव्य कृष्णपक्षे चतुर्दशीम्
yajiṣṇuḥ pañcamīṃ ṣaṣṭhīṃ kule bhojayate dvijān | aṣṭamīm atha kauravya kṛṣṇapakṣe caturdaśīm ||
Aṅgiras sprach: „Ein Mann, der dem Opfer und der heiligen Pflicht ergeben ist, speist Brahmanen am fünften und sechsten Mondtag im Rahmen der Familienriten; und, o Nachkomme der Kurus, ebenso am achten Tag und am vierzehnten Tag der dunklen Monatshälfte (kṛṣṇa-pakṣa). So erhält er die Gelehrten durch Gastfreundschaft an günstigen Tithis und stärkt das Dharma durch maßvolles Geben.“
अंगियरा उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that dharma is upheld through disciplined generosity: feeding learned Brahmins on specific lunar days (tithis) as part of family observance. Regular, rule-governed giving and hospitality are presented as a concrete practice of righteousness.
The sage Aṅgiras is instructing a Kuru-descended listener about prescribed days for hosting and feeding Brahmins—fifth, sixth, eighth, and the fourteenth day of the dark fortnight—within the broader Anuśāsana Parva discourse on duties, gifts, and religious observances.