Shloka 36
Gautama–Śakra Saṃvāda: Karma, Loka-bheda, and the Restoration of the Elephant
धृतराष्ट्र रवाच चातुर्मास्यिर्ये यजन्ते जना: सदा तथेष्टीनां दशशतं प्राप्तुवन्ति । ये चाग्निहोत्रं जुह्नति श्रद्दधाना यथाम्नायं त्रीणि वर्षाणि विप्रा:
dhṛtarāṣṭra uvāca—cāturmāsyair ye yajante janāḥ sadā tathā iṣṭīnāṃ daśaśataṃ prāptuvanti | ye cāgnihotraṃ juhvati śraddadhānā yathāmnāyaṃ trīṇi varṣāṇi viprāḥ |
Dhṛtarāṣṭra said: “Those people who regularly perform the Cāturmāsya sacrifices, who thereby attain the merit of hundreds and thousands of iṣṭi-offerings, and those Brahmins who, with faith, offer the daily Agnihotra according to the Vedic injunctions for three years—such disciplined upholders of dharma, firmly established on the Vedic path, are regarded as righteous and great-souled, and they attain Varuṇa’s world.”
गौतम उवाच
Educational Q&A
Steady, faith-filled observance of Vedic duties—especially regular seasonal sacrifices and the daily Agnihotra performed according to injunction—constitutes a disciplined bearing of dharma and is presented as a cause for attaining exalted post-mortem realms such as Varuṇa’s world.
Dhṛtarāṣṭra speaks about the spiritual results of specific Vedic rites, describing how those who consistently perform Cāturmāsya sacrifices and maintain Agnihotra with śraddhā for an extended period are regarded as righteous and attain a divine realm.