Shloka 12
अन्नदानफलं (Anna-dāna-phala) / The Fruit of Food-Giving
तथा भाद्रपदे मासि हृषीकेशेति पूजयन् | सौत्रामणिमवाप्रोति पूतात्मा भवते च हि
tathā bhādrapade māsi hṛṣīkeśeti pūjayan | sautrāmaṇim avāpnoti pūtātmā bhavate ca hi ||
Bhīṣma said: Likewise, in the month of Bhādrapada, one who worships the Lord as “Hṛṣīkeśa” attains the merit of the Sautrāmaṇi sacrifice; indeed, one becomes purified in soul.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma teaches that devotional worship of the Lord under a specific divine name (here, Hṛṣīkeśa) at an auspicious time (Bhādrapada) yields the same purificatory merit associated with a respected Vedic rite (Sautrāmaṇi), emphasizing inner purification as the ethical fruit.
In his instruction to Yudhiṣṭhira within the Anuśāsana Parva, Bhīṣma continues a sequence of observances tied to months and divine epithets, stating that worship in Bhādrapada addressing the deity as ‘Hṛṣīkeśa’ grants Sautrāmaṇi-like merit and purifies the worshipper.