Shloka 121
मानसतीर्थ-शौचप्रशंसा | Praise of the ‘Mental Tīrtha’ and the Marks of Purity
एकोनत्रिंशे दिवसे यः प्राशेदेकभोजनम्,जो बारह महीनोंतक सदा सत्यव्रतके पालनमें तत्पर हो उन््तीसवें दिन एक बार भोजन करता है, उसे देवर्षियों तथा राजर्षियोंद्वारा पूजित दिव्य मंगलमय लोक प्राप्त होते हैं
ekonatriṁśe divase yaḥ prāśed ekabhojanam | yo dvādaśa māsān yāvat sadā satyavrate pālane tatparo bhavati, sa ekonatriṁśe dine ekavāraṁ bhuṅkte; tena devarṣibhiḥ rājarṣibhiś ca pūjitaṁ divyaṁ maṅgalamayaṁ lokaṁ prāpnoti ||
Dijo Bhishma: Quien, durante doce meses, permanece constantemente entregado al voto de la verdad y, en el vigésimo noveno día, come una sola vez, alcanza un reino divino y auspicioso, honrado por los rishis celestiales y los rishis reales. La enseñanza ensalza la contención disciplinada unida a una veracidad inquebrantable como senda hacia una elevada recompensa espiritual.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Truthfulness sustained as a vow, combined with disciplined moderation in eating (single-meal observance on a specified day), is presented as a dharmic practice that yields exalted spiritual merit and access to auspicious celestial realms.
In Anushasana Parva, Bhishma continues instructing Yudhishthira on dharma by describing the fruits of specific vratas. Here he states the reward for a year-long commitment to satyavrata coupled with a regulated single-meal observance on the twenty-ninth day.