Shloka 148
Pitṛ-śrāddha-haviḥ-phala-nirdeśa
Offerings for Ancestors and Their Stated Results
अग्न्यभावे च कुरुते वह्निस्थानेषु काउ्चनम् | जामदग्न्य प्रमाणज्ञो वेदश्रुतिनिदर्शनात्
agnyabhāve ca kurute vahnistāneṣu kāñcanam | jāmadagnyaḥ pramāṇajño vedaśrutinidarśanāt ||
Vasiṣṭha dit : «Lorsque le feu fait défaut, celui qui connaît l’autorité légitime (pramāṇa)—comme l’atteste la révélation védique—peut employer l’or à la place où le feu est requis. Ô Paraśurāma, fils de Jamadagni, cela montre que le dharma se maintient en suivant le précédent des Veda et en recourant à un substitut admis lorsque les circonstances empêchent le rite premier.»
वसिष्ठ उवाच
Educational Q&A
Dharma and ritual duty are guided by Vedic authority; when the primary requirement (fire) is genuinely unavailable, one may use an approved substitute (gold) as supported by śruti-based precedent, preserving the intent of the rite rather than abandoning it.
Vasiṣṭha addresses Paraśurāma (Jāmadagnya), citing a Vedic-style example: in the absence of fire, gold may be used in the ritual context where fire would normally be employed, demonstrating how learned authorities apply śruti-backed alternatives under constraint.