Shloka 33

Devanagari script

प्रेतकार्ये निवृत्ते तु पितृमेधं महायशा: । लभतां सर्वधर्मज्ञ: पाण्डु: कुरुकुलोद्वह:,“सपिण्डीकरणपर्यन्त प्रेतकार्य निवृत्त हो जानेपर कुरुवंशके श्रेष्ठ पुरुष महायशस्वी एवं सम्पूर्ण धर्मोके ज्ञाता पाण्डुको पितृमेध (यज्ञ)-का भी लाभ मिलना चाहिये”

Transliteration

pretakārye nivṛtte tu pitṛmedhaṃ mahāyaśāḥ | labhatāṃ sarvadharmajñaḥ pāṇḍuḥ kurukulodvahaḥ ||

Translation

Vaiśampāyana said: When the rites for the departed had been duly completed, let the illustrious Pāṇḍu—foremost of the Kuru line and knower of all dharma—also receive the benefit of the pitṛmedha, the ancestral sacrificial rite. The passage underscores that beyond immediate funeral observances, dharma requires the full sequence of post-death duties so the deceased is properly integrated among the ancestors and honored according to lineage and law.

Word by Word

प्रेतकार्येin/with regard to the funerary rites

निवृत्तेhaving ceased/being completed

तुbut/indeed

पितृमेधम्the pitṛmedha rite (funeral/ancestral sacrifice)

महायशाःthe greatly renowned one

लभताम्let (him) obtain/receive

सर्वधर्मज्ञःknower of all dharmas

पाण्डुःPāṇḍu

कुरुकुलोद्वहःthe foremost of the Kuru lineage

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

Pāṇḍu

Kuru lineage (Kuru-kula)

pitṛmedha

preta-kārya

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Dharma is not limited to immediate funeral rites; it includes completing the prescribed post-death sequence so that the deceased receives due ancestral honor and the family fulfills its obligations to the Pitṛs.

What is happening in the narrative?

After the completion of the preta-kārya (departed-related rites), the text states that Pāṇḍu should also receive the benefit of the pitṛmedha—an ancestral rite—emphasizing proper ritual completion for a Kuru elder.