Shloka 101
Adhyāya 284: Tapas as a Corrective to Household Attachment
Parāśara’s Instruction
गर्भमांससूगालाय तारकाय तराय च । नमो यज्ञाय यजिने हुताय प्रहुताय च
garbhamāṃsaśṛgālāya tārakāya tarāya ca | namo yajñāya yajine hutāya prahutāya ca ||
Bhīṣma rend un hommage révérencieux à la Réalité suprême : à Celui que les êtres incarnés recherchent irrésistiblement, tel un chacal avide de chair, pour la vie du corps ; et qui est aussi le Libérateur et le moyen même de franchir l’au-delà. Je me prosterne devant Lui comme le sacrifice et comme le sacrifiant ; comme l’oblation offerte (huta) et comme le feu sacré qui la reçoit (prahuta).
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches the all-pervasiveness of the Supreme: the same Reality is the worship, the worshipper, the offering, and the fire—so ritual and moral action find their ultimate ground in the One, and liberation is attained by recognizing that One as both the goal (tāraka) and the means (tara).
In Shanti Parva’s instruction setting, Bhishma is speaking and offers a stuti (praise/salutation), identifying the divine principle through striking metaphors and through yajña-symbolism, as part of his broader teaching on dharma and the highest good.