Shloka 39
Vānaprastha-dharma and Tapas: Śiva–Umā Saṃvāda
Forest-Stage Discipline and Austerity
महामते! इस श्राद्धमें जो पहला पिण्ड पानीके भीतर चला जाता है, वह चन्द्रमाको तृप्त करता है और चन्द्रमा स्वयं देवता तथा पितरोंको तृप्त करते हैं ।।
mahāmate! asmin śrāddhe yaḥ prathamaḥ piṇḍaḥ salile praviśati sa candramasaṃ tarpayati, candramāś ca svayaṃ devān pitṝṃś ca tarpayati. bhuṅkte tu patnī yaṃ ca eṣām anujñātā tu madhyamam; putrakāmāya putraṃ tu prayacchanti pitāmahāḥ.
The divine messenger said: “O wise one, in this śrāddha, the first rice-ball offering that passes into the water satisfies the Moon. And the Moon, in turn, nourishes and satisfies both the gods and the ancestors. Likewise, when the performer’s wife—having obtained the permission of the elders—eats the middle piṇḍa, the forefathers, pleased by that act, grant a son to the man who longs for offspring.”
देवदूत उवाच
Educational Q&A
Śrāddha is presented as a dharmic act with cosmic linkage: offerings connect to Candra, who mediates nourishment to gods and ancestors. Properly authorized participation—especially the wife’s sanctioned act—can yield the fruit of progeny, emphasizing ritual order, consent of elders, and continuity of lineage.
A divine messenger explains the results of specific śrāddha actions: the first piṇḍa entering water satisfies the Moon, who then satisfies gods and ancestors; and the wife, with elders’ permission, eats the middle piṇḍa, by which the pleased forefathers grant a son to one who desires offspring.