Shloka 109
Pitṛ-śrāddha-haviḥ-phala-nirdeśa
Offerings for Ancestors and Their Stated Results
वैखानसा: समुत्पन्नास्तप: श्रुतगुणेप्सव: । अश्रुतो<स्य समुत्पन्नावश्चिनौ रूपसम्मतौ
vaikhānasāḥ samutpannās tapaḥ-śruta-guṇe-psavaḥ | aśruto 'sya samutpannāv aśvinau rūpa-sammatāv, vibho | atrai eva—
Vasiṣṭha said: “From those sacred sources arose the Vaikhānasa sages—men devoted to austerity, eager for scriptural learning, and desirous of virtuous qualities. From the tears of Agni were born the two Aśvins, universally honored for their beauty and excellence. And here itself, from those very clusters of kuśa grass, another brahmarṣi was born, whom people call Atri.”
वसिष्ठ उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights that revered lineages and divine helpers arise from disciplined, sacred sources: ascetic rigor (tapas), scriptural learning (śruta), and virtue (guṇa) are presented as the marks of exemplary sages, while the Aśvins’ origin underscores that even divine benefactors emerge from profound, meaningful causes.
Vasiṣṭha is recounting origins: the emergence of the Vaikhānasa sages characterized by tapas and Vedic learning, the birth of the twin Aśvins from Agni’s tears (as explained in the accompanying tradition), and the appearance of the seer Atri from sacred kuśa grass.