Shloka 18

उपवासफलात्मकविधिः — Upavāsa as Yajña-Equivalent Merit

Angiras Teaching

Devanagari script

सर्वकल्याणसम्पूर्ण: सर्वोषधिसमन्वित:

Transliteration

sarva-kalyāṇa-sampūrṇaḥ sarvauṣadhi-samanvitaḥ | mārgaśīrṣa-māse upavāsaṃ kṛtvā manuṣyaḥ dvitīye janmani roga-rahitaḥ balavāṃś ca bhavati | tasya kṛṣi-bāri-sukha-sādhanaṃ bhavati, sa ca bahu-dhana-dhānya-sampannaḥ bhavati |

Translation

A person becomes complete in every auspicious good and furnished with all healing resources—food, fruits, and the like. By observing a fast (upavāsa) in the month of Mārgaśīrṣa, one is said to be reborn free from disease and endowed with strength. Such a person gains the means and ease for agriculture and livelihood, and becomes prosperous, rich in wealth and grain. The ethical thrust is that disciplined restraint, undertaken in a sacred season, yields well-being, vigor, and stable, socially beneficial prosperity.

Word by Word

• सर्वकल्याणसम्पूर्णः: complete with all auspiciousness
• सर्वकल्याणसम्पूर्णः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्व-कल्याण-सम्पूर्ण
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• सर्वोषधिसमन्वितः: endowed with all herbs/medicinal plants
• सर्वोषधिसमन्वितः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्व-ओषधि-समन्वित
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

Speaker

अंगियरा उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Aṅgirā (speaker)
• Mārgaśīrṣa (month)
• upavāsa (fasting)
• auṣadhi (medicinal herbs/provisions)
• kṛṣi (agriculture)
• dhana-dhānya (wealth and grain)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Seasonal religious discipline—specifically fasting in Mārgaśīrṣa—is presented as a dharmic practice that generates merit leading to health, strength, and stable prosperity (wealth, grain, and livelihood resources) in a future life.

What is happening in the narrative?

Aṅgirā is describing the fruits (phala) of observing an upavāsa-vrata in the month of Mārgaśīrṣa, listing concrete outcomes: freedom from disease, bodily vigor, agricultural means, and abundance of wealth and grain.