Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 15
Śrāddha-Kalpa: Pitṛ-Pūjā and Tithi-Phala (श्राद्धकल्पः पितृपूजा च तिथिफलम्)
ततस्तं दर्भविन्यासं भित्त्वा सुरुचिरांगद: । प्रलम्बाभरणो बाहुरुदतिष्ठद् विशाम्पते
tatastaṃ darbha-vinyāsaṃ bhittvā surucirāṅgadaḥ | pralambābharaṇo bāhur udatiṣṭhad viśāmpate ||
प्रजानाथ! तभी पिण्डदान के लिए बिछाए हुए कुशों के विन्यास को भेदकर एक अत्यन्त सुन्दर भुजा ऊपर उठी; उस पर मनोहर बाजूबंद थे और लटकते हुए आभूषण शोभा पा रहे थे।
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the sanctity and potency of dharmic rites: ritual space (here, darbha laid for offerings) is not merely symbolic but a charged setting where extraordinary signs may manifest, reinforcing reverence for prescribed ancestral and sacrificial duties.
During preparations involving darbha grass laid out for a rite (contextually connected with piṇḍa-dāna), something wondrous occurs: an arm, richly ornamented with armlets and hanging jewelry, breaks through the darbha arrangement and rises up, as Bhishma narrates to the addressed king.