Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 119

ज्येष्ठ-कनिष्ठ-धर्मः — Duties of Elders and Juniors

Anuśāsana-parva 108

Devanagari script

नक्तं न कुर्यात्‌ पित्र्याणि भुक्त्वा चैव प्रसाधनम्‌

Transliteration

naktaṁ na kuryāt pitryāṇi bhuktvā caiva prasādhanam

Translation

भीष्म ने कहा—रात्रि में पितृकर्म नहीं करना चाहिए; और भोजन करने के बाद प्रसाधन अथवा शौच-शुद्धि के लिए कर्मकाण्डीय तैयारी भी नहीं करनी चाहिए।

Word by Word

• नक्तम्: at night
• नक्तम्: Adhikarana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: नक्तम्
• Form: Avyaya (temporal adverb)

• न: not
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न
• Form: Avyaya (negation)

• कुर्यात्: should do / should perform
• Type: Verb
• Root: कृ
• Form: Vidhi-lin (optative), parasmaipada, 3rd person, singular, present-system

• पित्र्याणि: ancestral rites (pitṛ-related acts/offerings)
• पित्र्याणि: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: पित्र्य
• Form: Neuter, accusative, plural

• भुक्त्वा: having eaten
• Type: Verb
• Root: भुज्
• Form: Absolutive (क्त्वा), indeclinable; prior action to main verb

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च
• Form: Avyaya (conjunction)

• एव: indeed / just
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव
• Form: Avyaya (emphasis)

• प्रसाधनम्: adornment; grooming; dressing/decoration
• प्रसाधनम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: प्रसाधन
• Form: Neuter, accusative, singular

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhishma
• Pitrs (ancestral spirits)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Ritual acts—especially ancestral rites—must be performed at proper times and in a state of appropriate purity; night-time performance and post-meal ritual preparation are discouraged as contrary to prescribed discipline.

What is happening in the narrative?

In Anuśāsana Parva, Bhishma instructs Yudhishthira on dharma and correct conduct, giving practical rules about śrāddha/Pitṛ-related observances and standards of cleanliness and timing.