Shloka 39
तीर्थवंशोपदेशः
Tīrtha-vaṃśa Upadeśa: Instruction on the Fruits of Sacred Waters
जातकर्मादिका: सर्वास्त्रिषु वर्णेषु भारत । ब्र्मक्षत्रे हि मन्त्रोक्ता वैश्यस्य च युधिष्ठिर,भरतवंशी युधिष्ठिर! तीनों वर्णोमें जातकर्म आदि समस्त संस्कारोंका विधान है। ब्राह्मण, क्षत्रिय और वैश्य तीनोंके सभी संस्कार वेद-मन्त्रोंक उच्चारण-पूर्वक होने चाहिये
jātakarmādikāḥ sarvāstrīṣu varṇeṣu bhārata | brahmakṣatre hi mantroktā vaiśyasya ca yudhiṣṭhira ||
Bhishma sprach: „O Yudhishthira, Spross der Bharatas! In den drei Ständen der ‘Zweimalgeborenen’ ist die gesamte Reihe der Sakramente — beginnend mit dem Geburtsritus (jātakarma) — vorgeschrieben. Für Brahmanen und Kshatriyas, und ebenso für Vaishyas, sind diese Riten unter Rezitation vedischer Mantras zu vollziehen.“
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhishma teaches that the classical life-cycle sacraments (saṃskāras), starting with jātakarma, are prescribed for the three twice-born varṇas—Brahmin, Kshatriya, and Vaishya—and that these rites should be performed with Vedic mantra-recitation, emphasizing ritual propriety as part of dharma.
In the Anushasana Parva’s instruction on dharma, Bhishma continues advising King Yudhishthira about duties and norms. Here he specifies who is entitled/obligated to perform the saṃskāras and how—namely, with mantras—for the three varṇas he lists.