Shloka 69
उपवासफलात्मकविधिः — Upavāsa as Yajña-Equivalent Merit
Angiras Teaching
परम बुद्धिमान् विश्वामित्रजी एक हजार दिव्य वर्षोंतक प्रतिदिन एक समय भोजन करके भूखका कष्ट सहते हुए तपमें लगे रहे। उससे उन्हें ब्राह्मणत्वकी प्राप्ति हुई ।।
parama-buddhimān viśvāmitraḥ sahasraṁ divya-varṣāṇi pratidinam eka-kāla-bhojī bhūksā-kleśaṁ sahamānas tapasi rato 'bhavat; tena tasya brāhmaṇatva-prāptiḥ. cyavano jamadagniś ca vasiṣṭho gautamo bhṛguḥ; sarva eva kṣamāvanto maharṣaya upavāsenaiva divam prāptāḥ.
Aṅgiras dit : Le très sage Viśvāmitra accomplit des austérités durant mille années divines, ne mangeant qu’une fois par jour et supportant la douleur de la faim ; par cette discipline, il obtint le rang de brāhmaṇa. De même, les grands ṛṣi Cyavana, Jamadagni, Vasiṣṭha, Gautama et Bhṛgu—patients et indulgents de nature—atteignirent les mondes célestes par le jeûne et la maîtrise de soi.
अंगियरा उवाच
Educational Q&A
Endurance (kṣamā) and disciplined austerity (tapas), especially restraint in eating and fasting, are presented as powerful ethical-spiritual practices that can transform one’s status and lead to higher attainments.
Aṅgiras cites Viśvāmitra’s long austerity—eating once daily for a thousand divine years—to explain his attainment of brāhmaṇa status, and then lists other renowned sages who reached heavenly realms through fasting and forbearance.