Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 141
Pitṛ-śrāddha-haviḥ-phala-nirdeśa
Offerings for Ancestors and Their Stated Results
देवपक्षचरा: सौम्या: प्राजापत्या महर्षय: । आप्नवन्ति तपश्चैव ब्रह्मचर्य परं तथा
devapakṣacarāḥ saumyāḥ prājāpatyā maharṣayaḥ | āpnavanti tapaś caiva brahmacarya-paraṃ tathā ||
Vasiṣṭha said: “May these great seers, born in the line of the Prajāpatis, be gentle by nature, stand always on the side of the gods, and attain the strength that comes from austerity and from the highest commitment to brahmacarya (disciplined celibate conduct).”
वसिष्ठ उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse praises and enjoins a dharmic ideal for sages: gentleness (saumya-bhāva), alignment with divine order (standing with the devas), and inner power gained through tapas (austerity) and brahmacarya (disciplined restraint). Ethical authority is shown as arising from self-control rather than force.
Vasiṣṭha is speaking a benedictive or prescriptive statement about a group of great seers of Prajāpati lineage—describing how they should be in character and what spiritual strengths they should attain: devotion to the gods’ side, austerity, and exemplary brahmacarya.