Shloka 11
Nāga–Nāgabhāryā Saṃvāda: Varṇa-Dharma, Gṛhastha-Discipline, and Mokṣa-Self-Inquiry
Mahābhārata 12.347
त्रीन् पिण्डान् न्यस्य वै पृथ्व्यां पूर्व दत्त्वा कुशानिति । कथं तु पिण्डसंज्ञां ते पितरो लेभिरे पुरा
trīn piṇḍān nyasya vai pṛthivyāṃ pūrvaṃ dattvā kuśān iti | kathaṃ tu piṇḍasaṃjñāṃ te pitaro lebhire purā ||
ナーラダは言った。「まず地にクシャ草（kuśa）を敷き、その上に祖霊たるピトリ（Pitṛ）に捧げる三つのピンダ供（piṇḍa）を置いてから、彼らを供養するという。なぜこの作法が行われるのか。さらに太古において、ピトリたちはいかにして『ピンダ』という名で呼ばれるようになったのか。」
नारद उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a dharmic inquiry into the rationale behind Śrāddha procedure—why kuśa is laid down and why three piṇḍa offerings are placed for the ancestors—emphasizing that ritual acts should be grounded in understood tradition (vidhi) and remembered origins, not performed mechanically.
Nārada asks for an explanation of an established ancestral rite: first placing kuśa grass on the ground, then setting three piṇḍas for the Pitṛs and worshipping them. He specifically seeks the ancient origin of the Pitṛs being associated with the term ‘piṇḍa’ and the reason the rite uses three offerings.