Shloka 61
Āloka-dāna (Dīpa-dāna), Sumanas–Dhūpa–Dīpa Phala: Manu–Suvarṇa and Śukra–Bali Exempla
कार्या रुधिरमांसाढूया बलयो यक्षरक्षसाम् । सुरासवपुरस्कारा लाजोल्लापिकभूषिता:
kāryā rudhiramāṃsāḍhyā balayo yakṣarakṣasām | surāsavapuraskārā lājollāpikabhūṣitāḥ ||
Śukra dit : «Pour les Yakṣas et les Rākṣasas, on doit faire des offrandes riches de sang et de chair—précédées de liqueur et de boisson fermentée, et ornées par la dispersion de grains grillés.»
शुक्र उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse marks a moral-ritual distinction: certain beings (Yakṣas/Rākṣasas) are associated with offerings characterized by violence (blood and meat) and intoxication (surā/āsava). By implication, it cautions that the nature of worship reflects the worshipper’s disposition (sāttvika vs āsuric) and that dharmic practice tends away from harm and degradation.
Śukra is describing the customary form of bali offered to Yakṣas and Rākṣasas: oblations rich in blood and flesh, accompanied by liquor and fermented drink, and ceremonially ‘decorated’ by scattering parched grains. The statement functions as a characterization of a particular ritual culture rather than a universal prescription for dharmic sacrifice.