Shloka 27

मानसतीर्थ-शौचप्रशंसा | Praise of the ‘Mental Tīrtha’ and the Marks of Purity

Devanagari script

सदा द्वादशमासान्‌ वै जुह्मानो जातवेदसम्‌ | सदा त्रिषवणस्नायी ब्रह्मचार्यनसूयक:

Transliteration

sadā dvādaśa-māsān vai juhmāno jātavedasam | sadā triṣavaṇa-snānī brahmacāry anasūyakaḥ ||

Translation

Bhishma dijo: «Quien, durante doce meses completos, ofrece sin cesar oblaciones al fuego sagrado (Agni), se baña regularmente en los tres momentos del día, vive en disciplina de continencia y está libre de envidia—ése encarna la conducta constante y purificadora que el dharma alaba.»

Word by Word

• सदा: always
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: सदा

• द्वादश: twelve
• द्वादश: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: द्वादश
• Form: Gender: masculine; Case: accusative; Number: plural (agreeing with मासान्)

• मासान्: months
• मासान्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: मास
• Form: Gender: masculine; Case: accusative; Number: plural

• वै: indeed
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: वै

• जुह्मानः: offering (in sacrifice), sacrificing
• जुह्मानः: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: हु (जुहोति)
• Form: Participle: present active (शतृ); Gender: masculine; Case: nominative; Number: singular

• जातवेदसम्: Jātavedas (Agni)
• जातवेदसम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: जातवेदस्
• Form: Gender: masculine; Case: accusative; Number: singular

• सदा: always
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: सदा

• त्रिषवणस्नायी: one who bathes at the three daily savanas
• त्रिषवणस्नायी: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: त्रिषवण-स्नायिन्
• Form: Gender: masculine; Case: nominative; Number: singular

• ब्रह्मचारी: a celibate student; one observing brahmacarya
• ब्रह्मचारी: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्रह्मचारिन्
• Form: Gender: masculine; Case: nominative; Number: singular

• अनसूयकः: free from envy; non-censorious
• अनसूयकः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अनसूयक
• Form: Gender: masculine; Case: nominative; Number: singular

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhīṣma
• Agni (Jātavedas)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Dharma is strengthened by sustained discipline: regular sacrificial duty (fire-offerings), daily purity practices (three-time bathing), celibate restraint, and a mind free from envy or fault-finding.

What is happening in the narrative?

In Bhīṣma’s instruction on dharma, he lists exemplary observances and virtues—year-long offerings to Agni, tri-daily bathing, brahmacarya, and non-envy—as marks of a righteous practitioner.