Shloka 5
जपयोगयोः तुल्यफलनिर्णयः
Adhyāya 193: Adjudication of the Comparable Fruits of Japa and Yoga
कृत्वाग्निहोत्रं स्वशरीरसंस्थं शारीरमर्ग्निं स्वमुखे जुहोति । विप्रस्तु भैक्ष्यौपगतै्ह विर्भि- श्रिताग्निनां स व्रजते हि लोकम्,जो ब्राह्मण अग्निहोत्रको अपने शरीरमें आरोपित करके शरीरस्थ अग्निके उद्देश्यसे अपने मुखमें प्राप्त भिक्षारूप हविष्यका होम करता है, वह अग्नि-चयन करनेवाले अन्निहोत्रियोंके लोकमें जाता है
kṛtvāgnihotraṃ svaśarīrasaṃsthaṃ śārīram agniṃ svamukhe juhoti | vipras tu bhaikṣyaupagatair havirbhir hṛtāgnināṃ sa vrajate hi lokam ||
Bharadvāja said: Having established the Agnihotra within his own body, a brahmin offers oblations into the bodily fire by consuming the alms-food that comes to him as sacrificial offering. By this inner sacrifice, he attains the world of those who have performed the fire-altar rite and maintained the sacred fires—teaching that disciplined renunciation and mindful sustenance can become a true Agnihotra when outward ritual is internalized without abandoning dharma.
भरद्वाज उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that true sacrifice can be internalized: when a disciplined brahmin treats alms-food as havis and offers it into the ‘bodily fire’ through mindful consumption, he fulfills the spirit of Agnihotra and gains merit comparable to formal fire-ritualists.
Bharadvāja explains a dharmic model for those who may not maintain external sacred fires: the ascetic or mendicant performs an inner Agnihotra by sustaining himself on alms as a sacrificial offering, thereby attaining the same exalted realm associated with established fire-keepers.