Shloka 23
Nāga–Nāgabhāryā Saṃvāda: Varṇa-Dharma, Gṛhastha-Discipline, and Mokṣa-Self-Inquiry
Mahābhārata 12.347
पितामहपिता चैव अहमेवात्र कारणम् | इत्येतदुक्त्वा वचनं देवदेवो वृषाकपि:
pitāmahapitā caiva aham evātra kāraṇam | ity etad uktvā vacanaṁ devadevo vṛṣākapiḥ ||
Nārada said: “I am indeed the father of the Grandfather (Brahmā), and I alone am the cause here (of this world).” Having spoken these words, the God of gods—Vṛṣākapi (Viṣṇu)—then, upon the Varāha-mountain, performed the ancestral offering (piṇḍadāna) in full detail. Taking the form of the Pitṛs, he worshipped none other than himself, and then disappeared from that very place.
नारद उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that the supreme deity is the ultimate cause—even beyond Brahmā—yet still upholds dharma by performing and honoring ancestral rites. It models humility within supremacy: cosmic sovereignty does not negate ritual responsibility.
Nārada reports that Viṣṇu (called Vṛṣākapi) declares himself the source of all, then performs piṇḍadāna on Varāha-mountain, worshipping himself in the form of the Pitṛs, and finally vanishes from the spot.