Shloka 27
गोप्रदान-माहात्म्ये गोलोक-प्रश्नः
Gopradāna-Māhātmya: Inquiry into Goloka
तथा प्रशंसते दीपान् यम: पितृहितेप्सया । तस्माद् दीपप्रदो नित्यं संतारयति वै पितृन्
tathā praśaṃsate dīpān yamaḥ pitṛ-hitepsayā | tasmād dīpa-prado nityaṃ saṃtārayati vai pitṝn |
Bhīṣma dit : Yama, désireux du bien des ancêtres, loue de même l’offrande de lampes. Ainsi, celui qui donne régulièrement des lampes aide véritablement ses aïeux à « franchir le passage »—leur apportant profit et élévation par cet acte de piété.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Regular dīpa-dāna (offering/gifting lamps) is praised as a dharmic act specifically oriented to pitṛ-hita—promoting the welfare of one’s ancestors—and is said to aid their ‘crossing over’ (saṃtāraṇa), i.e., their upliftment in the posthumous realm.
In Bhīṣma’s instruction on dharma, he cites Yama’s approval of lamp-offering as authoritative support for the practice, concluding that the habitual giver of lamps benefits and delivers the Pitṛs.