Shloka 41

उपवासफलात्मकविधिः — Upavāsa as Yajña-Equivalent Merit

Angiras Teaching

Devanagari script

यस्तु संवत्सरं पूर्ण चतुर्थ भक्तमश्लुते

Transliteration

yastu saṁvatsaraṁ pūrṇaṁ caturtha-bhaktam aśnute

Translation

അംഗിരസൻ പറഞ്ഞു—എന്നാൽ പൂർണ്ണമായൊരു വർഷം (സാധാരണ ആഹാരത്തിന്റെ) നാലിലൊന്ന് മാത്രം ഭക്ഷിക്കുന്നവൻ…

Word by Word

• यः: who
• यः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• तु: but/indeed
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु

• संवत्सरम्: a year
• संवत्सरम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: संवत्सर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• पूर्णम्: complete/entire
• पूर्णम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पूर्ण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• चतुर्थम्: the fourth (part)
• चतुर्थम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: चतुर्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• भक्तम्: food/portion (meal)
• भक्तम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: भक्त (प्रातिपदिक; from √भज् in sense of 'portion/food')
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• अश्नुते: eats/partakes
• Type: Verb
• Root: √अश् (अश्नोति) / √अश् (to eat)
• Form: Present, 3rd, Singular, Ātmanepada

Speaker

अंगियरा उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Aṅgiras

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse points to disciplined moderation in eating as a form of tapas: sustained restraint over time is treated as ethically transformative, generating merit and strengthening self-mastery—key supports for dharma.

What is happening in the narrative?

Aṅgiras is describing (or beginning to describe) the results of a specific vow: for an entire year the practitioner limits food to a quarter portion, setting up a discussion of the spiritual/ethical fruits of such austerity.