Shloka 33
तीर्थवंशोपदेशः
Tīrtha-vaṃśa Upadeśa: Instruction on the Fruits of Sacred Waters
क्रियमाणे5पवर्गे च यो द्विजो भरतर्षभ । न व्याहरति यद्युक्त तस्याधर्मो गवानृतम्
kriyamāṇe ’pavarge ca yo dvijo bharatarṣabha | na vyāharati yadyuktaṃ tasyādharmo gavānṛtam ||
Bhīṣma sprach: „O Stier unter den Bharatas, wenn ein Ritus vollzogen wird, der auf ‘Apavarga’ (Befreiung) zielt, und ein Zweimalgeborener dabei nicht die angemessenen und vorgeschriebenen Worte ausspricht, dann wird dieses Versäumnis für ihn zu adharma — zu einer Unwahrheit, so schwer wie eine Lüge über eine Kuh.“
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
In sacred contexts, especially rites aimed at spiritual uplift, silence or failure to recite what is duly prescribed is itself a breach of dharma; ethical responsibility includes speaking the right words at the right time.
Bhīṣma, instructing Yudhiṣṭhira in the Anuśāsana Parva’s dharma teachings, emphasizes the moral weight of correct ritual speech: neglecting proper utterance during a liberation-oriented rite is counted as serious wrongdoing.