Shloka 453

Śrāddha-Kalpa: Pitṛ-Pūjā and Tithi-Phala (श्राद्धकल्पः पितृपूजा च तिथिफलम्)

Devanagari script

तन्निबोध महाबाहो सर्व निगदतो मम । 'सुवर्णका दान तुम्हें उत्तम फल देगा; क्योंकि वह दानके लिये सर्वोत्तम बताया जाता है। महाबाहो! सुवर्णका जो स्वरूप है, जिससे उत्पन्न हुआ है और जिस प्रकार वह विशेष गुणकारी है, वह सब बता रहा हूँ, मुझसे सुनो

Transliteration

tan nibodha mahābāho sarvaṃ nigadato mama | suvarṇakā dānaṃ tubhyaṃ uttamaṃ phalaṃ dāsyati; yasmād dānārthe śreṣṭhatamaṃ prakīrtitam | mahābāho! suvarṇakā yad rūpaṃ, yasmāt sambhūtaṃ, yathā ca viśeṣa-guṇakārī, tat sarvaṃ te bravīmi—śṛṇu me |

Translation

Bhishma sprach: „Nimm dies zur Kenntnis, o Starkarmiger, während ich dir alles darlege. Die Gabe von Gold wird dir die höchste Frucht bringen, denn sie wird als die beste aller Gaben gepriesen. O Starkarmiger, ich werde dir vollständig erklären, wie Gold beschaffen ist, woraus es entsteht und auf welche Weise es eine besondere Wirkkraft besitzt—höre mich an.“

Word by Word

• {'tan': 'that

• this (what follows)', 'nibodha': 'understand

• grasp (imperative)', 'mahābāho': 'O mighty-armed one (epithet, typically addressing Yudhiṣṭhira)', 'sarvam': 'everything

• the whole matter', 'nigadataḥ': 'while speaking

• as I declare/explain', 'mama': 'of me

• by me', 'suvarṇakā': 'gold (as a substance

• also ‘golden object/coin’ depending on context)', 'dānam': 'gift

• act of giving (charity)', 'tubhyam': 'to you

• for you', 'uttamam': 'highest

• best', 'phalam': 'fruit

• result (spiritual/ethical merit)', 'dāsyati': 'will give

• will bestow', 'yasmāt': 'because

• since', 'dānārthe': 'for the purpose of giving

• in the context of charity', 'śreṣṭhatamam': 'the very best

• most excellent', 'prakīrtitam': 'is proclaimed

• is celebrated', 'rūpam': 'form

• characteristics', 'yasmāt (sambhūtam)': 'from which (it is) produced

• origin', 'sambhūtam': 'arisen

• produced', 'yathā': 'how

• in what manner', 'viśeṣa-guṇakārī': 'producing special qualities/benefits

• exceptionally efficacious', 'tat sarvam': 'all that', 'bravīmi': 'I tell

• I explain', 'śṛṇu': 'listen (imperative)', 'me': 'to me

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhishma
• Mahabaho (addressee, traditionally Yudhishthira)
• Suvarṇa (gold)
• Dāna (charitable gift)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Bhishma teaches that giving gold (suvarṇa-dāna) is regarded as among the सर्वोत्तम (best) forms of charity, yielding ‘uttama phala’—a superior ethical and spiritual result—when done with the proper intention and understanding of its significance.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Anushasana Parva’s instruction on dharma, Bhishma addresses the listener (commonly Yudhiṣṭhira) and introduces a focused teaching: he will explain the nature, origin, and special efficacy of gold, to justify why gold-gifting is praised as an excellent dāna.