Shloka 8
Śrāddha-Kalpa: Pitṛ-Pūjā and Tithi-Phala (श्राद्धकल्पः पितृपूजा च तिथिफलम्)
कस्माद् दानं सुवर्णस्य पूजयन्ति मनीषिण: । कस्माच्च दक्षिणार्थ तद् यज्ञकर्मसु शस्यते
yudhiṣṭhira uvāca |
kasmād dānaṁ suvarṇasya pūjayanti manīṣiṇaḥ |
kasmāc ca dakṣiṇārthaṁ tad yajñakarmasu śasyate ||
Yudhiṣṭhira said: “For what reason do the wise hold the gift of gold in special honor? And why is gold especially commended in sacrificial rites as the proper fee (dakṣiṇā)?”
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames an ethical inquiry into dāna and ritual duty: it asks why gold is considered an especially meritorious gift and why it is recommended as dakṣiṇā in yajñas, inviting an explanation of value, purity, and social-religious function in dharma.
In Anuśāsana Parva’s instruction-focused dialogue, Yudhiṣṭhira poses a question to an elder teacher (contextually Bhīṣma’s discourse) about the privileged status of gold in charity and sacrificial remuneration, setting up a didactic response on proper giving and ritual norms.