Shloka 76
Vānaprastha-dharma and Tapas: Śiva–Umā Saṃvāda
Forest-Stage Discipline and Austerity
दुर्गात् ते तारयिष्यन्ति नरकात् प्रपितामहान् । जो मनुष्य पितरोंमें श्रद्धा रखकर संतान उत्पन्न करेंगे, वे अपने प्रपितामहोंका दुर्गम नरकसे उद्धार कर देंगे ।। पितृणां भाषितं श्रुत्वा हृष्टरोेमा तपोधन:
durgāt te tārayiṣyanti narakāt prapitāmahān | pitṛṇām bhāṣitaṃ śrutvā hṛṣṭaromā tapodhanaḥ ||
Śakra berkata: “Mereka akan menyeberangkan para buyutmu dari bahaya dan dari neraka. Orang-orang yang, dengan śraddhā kepada para Pitṛ, memperanakkan keturunan, akan menyelamatkan para buyut mereka dari neraka yang sukar dilampaui.” Mendengar sabda tentang para Pitṛ itu, sang pertapa yang kaya tapa pun merinding, bulu kuduknya berdiri.
शक्र उवाच
Educational Q&A
Faithful continuation of lineage and reverence toward the Pitṛs is presented as a powerful dharmic act: by begetting offspring with śraddhā for the ancestors, one enables the deliverance of forefathers—even great-grandfathers—from grievous post-mortem suffering.
Indra (Śakra) explains the salvific effect of progeny and ancestral faith: descendants can ‘ferry across’ their ancestors from peril/hell. After hearing this teaching about the Pitṛs, an ascetic (tapodhana) reacts with intense joy and reverence, marked by horripilation.