Shloka 18
अलोभोपाख्यानम् — शुनःसख-यातुधानी-संवादः
The Allegory of Non-Greed: Śunaḥsakha and the Yātudhānī
कल्माषगोयुगेनाथ युक्तेन तरतो जलम् । पितरो5भिलपषणन्ते वै नावं चाप्यधिरोहिता:
kalmāṣa-goyugenātha yuktena tarato jalam | pitaro 'bhilapaṣaṇante vai nāvaṃ cāpy adhirohitāḥ ||
Bhīṣma dijo: “Cuando alguien cruza el agua con un yugo bien ajustado a un buey jaspeado, los Pitṛs (espíritus ancestrales) claman con aprobación, como si ellos mismos hubieran subido a la barca.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
That dharmic intention supported by proper, orderly means can generate merit connected with the Pitṛs; even an ordinary act like safely crossing water, when done rightly, is portrayed as pleasing the ancestors.
Bhishma describes a vivid image: a person crosses water using a properly yoked ox-yoke arrangement, and the Pitṛs are said to call out as if they have boarded the boat too—signaling approval and the ancestral dimension of righteous action.