Shloka 1
छत्रोपानहदानफलप्रशंसा — Praise of the Merit of Donating Umbrella and Footwear
ऑपन-- माल छा जज पञ्चनवतितमो< ध्याय: छत्र और उपानहकी उत्पत्ति एवं दानविषयक युधिष्ठिरका प्रश्न तथा सूर्यकी प्रचण्ड धूपसे रेणुकाका मस्तक और पैरोंके संतप्त होनेपर जमदग्निका सूर्यपर कुपित होना और विप्ररूपधारी सूर्यसे वार्तालाप युधिछिर उवाच यदिदं श्राद्धकृत्येषु दीयते भरतर्षभ । छत्र॑ चोपानहौ चैव केनैतत् सम्प्रवर्तितम्,युधिष्ठिरने पूछा--भरतश्रेष्ठ! श्राद्धकर्मोमें जिनका दान दिया जाता है, उन छत्र और उपानहोंके दानकी प्रथा किसने चलायी है?
Yudhiṣṭhira uvāca | yad idaṁ śrāddha-kṛtyeṣu dīyate bharatarṣabha | chatraṁ copānahau caiva kenaitat sampravartitam ||
Yudhiṣṭhira said: “O bull among the Bharatas, in the rites of śrāddha, gifts are given—especially an umbrella and footwear. By whom was this custom first set in motion?”
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames dāna (ritual gifting) as a dharmic practice within śrāddha and invites reflection on why particular gifts—umbrella and footwear, associated with protection and relief—are considered meritorious for the welfare of ancestors and the ethical cultivation of the giver.
At the start of the chapter, Yudhiṣṭhira asks an elder authority (addressed as ‘bharatarṣabha’) about the origin of the custom of donating an umbrella and footwear during śrāddha rites, setting up an explanatory account that follows.