Shloka 2
Nāga–Nāgabhāryā Saṃvāda: Varṇa-Dharma, Gṛhastha-Discipline, and Mokṣa-Self-Inquiry
Mahābhārata 12.347
ततस्तं वचन प्राह ज्येष्ठो धर्मात्मज: प्रभु: । क इज्यते द्विजश्रेष्ठ दैवे पित्रये च कल्पिते
tatas taṁ vacanaṁ prāha jyeṣṭho dharmātmajaḥ prabhuḥ | ka ijyate dvijaśreṣṭha daive pitrye ca kalpite ||
Then the eldest son of Dharma, the lordly Yudhiṣṭhira, addressed him: “O best of twice-born, when rites are duly performed for the gods and for the ancestors, who is truly worshipped through those acts? Tell me this according to the śāstra. What is the rite you undertake, and what fruit do you seek by it?”
वैशमग्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a dharma-inquiry: ritual acts for gods and ancestors are not merely mechanical; one must understand, as śāstra teaches, who is truly honored through them and what intended fruit (phala) is sought. It emphasizes informed, ethically grounded performance of duty.
In Śānti Parva’s instructional setting, Yudhiṣṭhira addresses a learned Brahmin (or teacher-figure) and asks a precise doctrinal question about daiva and pitṛ rites—who receives worship through them, what rite is being performed, and what result is aimed at.