Shloka 193

अलोभोपाख्यानम् — शुनःसख-यातुधानी-संवादः

The Allegory of Non-Greed: Śunaḥsakha and the Yātudhānī

Devanagari script

पुष्टिरायुस्तथा वीर्य श्रीक्षैव पितृभक्तित: । अत: जो इस बातको जानते हैं

Transliteration

puṣṭir āyus tathā vīryaṁ śrīś caiva pitṛbhaktitaḥ |

Translation

ビーシュマは宣言する。「祖霊（ピトリ）への敬虔は、養いと安寧、長寿、力と武威、そして繁栄（シュリー／ラクシュミー）を人にもたらす。ゆえにこれを知る者は心を一つにして、旅の途上にあっても常に祖霊のために水を捧げるべきである。また、暗半月（クリシュナ・パクシャ）の新月日（アマーヴァースヤー）には、必ずシュラーダ（śrāddha）を行わねばならぬ。」

Word by Word

• [{'term': 'puṣṭiḥ', 'definition': 'nourishment

• well-being'}, {'term': 'āyuḥ', 'definition': 'life-span

• longevity'}, {'term': 'vīryam', 'definition': 'vigor

• potency'}, {'term': 'śrīḥ', 'definition': 'prosperity

• auspiciousness'}, {'term': 'pitṛ-bhaktiḥ', 'definition': 'devotion to the ancestors (Pitṛs)

• filial piety toward forebears'}, {'term': 'pitaraḥ (Pitṛs)', 'definition': 'ancestral spirits

• forefathers as recipients of rites'}, {'term': 'udaka-dāna (implied by context)', 'definition': 'offering of water (tarpana) to the ancestors'}, {'term': 'śrāddha (contextual)', 'definition': 'ancestral rite/oblation performed with faith for the benefit of the Pitṛs'}, {'term': 'kṛṣṇa-pakṣa (contextual)', 'definition': 'the dark fortnight of the lunar month'}, {'term': 'amāvāsyā (contextual)', 'definition': 'new-moon day

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhishma
• Pitṛs (ancestors)
• amāvāsyā (new-moon day)
• kṛṣṇa-pakṣa (dark fortnight)
• śrāddha
• udaka (water offering/tarpana)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Devotion to the ancestors (pitṛbhakti), expressed through rites like water-offering and śrāddha—especially on amāvāsyā—yields well-being (puṣṭi), longevity (āyuḥ), vigor (vīrya), and prosperity (śrī). The verse frames ancestral gratitude as a sustaining pillar of dharma.

What is happening in the narrative?

In Anuśāsana Parva, Bhishma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on duties and observances. Here he is teaching the proper regard for the Pitṛs, recommending focused offerings and highlighting the new-moon of the dark fortnight as an important occasion for śrāddha.