Pitṛ-śrāddha-haviḥ-phala-nirdeśa
Offerings for Ancestors and Their Stated Results
अन्रैवात्रेति च विभो जातमत्रिं वदन्त्यपि | तथा भस्मव्यपोहेभ्यो ब्रह्मर्षिगणसम्मता:
anraivātreti ca vibho jātam atriṁ vadanty api | tathā bhasmavyapohebhyo brahmarṣigaṇasammatāḥ |
Vasiṣṭha dit : «Ô puissant, de ces mêmes touffes de kuśa naquit un autre Brahmarṣi, que l’on appelle aussi Atri. De même, des tas de cendre tamisée naquirent les Vaikhānasas, honorés parmi les assemblées des Brahmarṣis : des ascètes qui recherchent l’austérité, la connaissance des śāstras et les vertus nobles.»
वसिष्ठ उवाच
The passage elevates tapas (austerity), śāstra-jñāna (scriptural understanding), and sadguṇa (noble virtues) as the defining aims of revered ascetic lineages, presenting spiritual excellence as grounded in disciplined practice and ethical cultivation.
Vasiṣṭha describes mythic origins: Atri is said to arise from the same source previously mentioned (here implied as kuśa clusters), and the Vaikhānasas are said to arise from sifted heaps of ash, being honored among Brahmarṣis for their ascetic and learned character.