Shloka 3

Śrāddha-utpatti and Nivāpa–Agni Precedence (श्राद्धोत्पत्तिः—निवापेऽग्निपूर्वकत्वम्)

Devanagari script

अपत्यकामो रोहिण्यां तेजस्कामो मृगोत्तमे । क्रूरकर्मा ददच्छाद्धमाद्रायां मानवो भवेत्‌

Transliteration

Bhīṣma uvāca: apatyakāmo rohiṇyāṃ tejaskāmo mṛgottame | krūrakarmā dadac chrāddham ādrāyāṃ mānavo bhavet ||

Translation

Bhishma bersabda: “Barangsiapa menginginkan keturunan hendaknya melaksanakan śrāddha pada saat nakṣatra Rohiṇī. Barangsiapa menginginkan ketegasan cahaya, daya, dan wibawa hendaknya melaksanakannya pada nakṣatra Mṛgaśīrṣa, yang utama di antara bintang-bintang ‘mṛga’. Namun, orang yang mempersembahkan śrāddha pada nakṣatra Ārdrā akan cenderung pada perbuatan kejam; karena itu śrāddha tidak patut dilakukan pada Ārdrā.”

Word by Word

• {'aptyakāmaḥ (apatyakāmaḥ)': 'desiring offspring/progeny', 'rohiṇyām': 'in/under the nakṣatra Rohiṇī (locative)', 'tejaskāmaḥ': 'desiring tejas—splendor, brilliance, vigor', 'mṛgottame': 'in the best among the ‘mṛga’ nakṣatras

• commonly taken as Mṛgaśīrṣa (locative)', 'krūrakarmā': 'one of cruel actions

• inclined to harsh/violent deeds', 'dadat': 'giving, bestowing (present participle of √dā)', 'śrāddham': 'ancestral rite/oblation offered to Pitṛs

• funerary/ancestral offering', 'ādrāyām': 'in/under the nakṣatra Ārdrā (locative)', 'mānavaḥ': 'a human being, man', 'bhavet': 'would become (optative of √bhū)'}

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhīṣma
• Śrāddha
• Rohiṇī (nakṣatra)
• Mṛgaśīrṣa / Mṛga (nakṣatra group)
• Ārdrā (nakṣatra)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse teaches that the timing of śrāddha is ethically and spiritually consequential: certain nakṣatras are recommended for specific aims (progeny, tejas), while Ārdrā is discouraged because it is said to foster a disposition toward cruel action.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Anuśāsana Parva’s instruction section, Bhīṣma continues advising on dharma and ritual propriety, specifying which lunar mansions are considered suitable or unsuitable for performing śrāddha and what effects are traditionally attributed to those timings.