Shloka 453

Śrāddha-Kalpa: Pitṛ-Pūjā and Tithi-Phala (श्राद्धकल्पः पितृपूजा च तिथिफलम्)

Devanagari script

तन्निबोध महाबाहो सर्व निगदतो मम । 'सुवर्णका दान तुम्हें उत्तम फल देगा; क्योंकि वह दानके लिये सर्वोत्तम बताया जाता है। महाबाहो! सुवर्णका जो स्वरूप है

Transliteration

tan nibodha mahābāho sarvaṃ nigadato mama | suvarṇakā dānaṃ tubhyaṃ uttamaṃ phalaṃ dāsyati; yasmād dānārthe śreṣṭhatamaṃ prakīrtitam | mahābāho! suvarṇakā yad rūpaṃ, yasmāt sambhūtaṃ, yathā ca viśeṣa-guṇakārī, tat sarvaṃ te bravīmi—śṛṇu me |

Translation

ഭീഷ്മൻ പറഞ്ഞു—മഹാബാഹോ! ഞാൻ പറയുന്നതെല്ലാം നന്നായി ഗ്രഹിക്ക. സ്വർണ്ണദാനം നിനക്ക് ഉത്തമഫലം നൽകും; കാരണം ദാനങ്ങളിൽ അതിനെ ശ്രേഷ്ഠമെന്നു പ്രസ്താവിച്ചിരിക്കുന്നു. മഹാബാഹോ! സ്വർണ്ണത്തിന്റെ സ്വരൂപം എന്ത്, അത് എവിടെ നിന്നു ഉത്ഭവിച്ചു, എങ്ങനെ അത് പ്രത്യേക ഗുണകരമാണെന്ന്—ഇതെല്ലാം ഞാൻ വിശദമായി പറയുന്നു; കേൾക്കുക.

Word by Word

• {'tan': 'that

• this (what follows)', 'nibodha': 'understand

• grasp (imperative)', 'mahābāho': 'O mighty-armed one (epithet, typically addressing Yudhiṣṭhira)', 'sarvam': 'everything

• the whole matter', 'nigadataḥ': 'while speaking

• as I declare/explain', 'mama': 'of me

• by me', 'suvarṇakā': 'gold (as a substance

• also ‘golden object/coin’ depending on context)', 'dānam': 'gift

• act of giving (charity)', 'tubhyam': 'to you

• for you', 'uttamam': 'highest

• best', 'phalam': 'fruit

• result (spiritual/ethical merit)', 'dāsyati': 'will give

• will bestow', 'yasmāt': 'because

• since', 'dānārthe': 'for the purpose of giving

• in the context of charity', 'śreṣṭhatamam': 'the very best

• most excellent', 'prakīrtitam': 'is proclaimed

• is celebrated', 'rūpam': 'form

• characteristics', 'yasmāt (sambhūtam)': 'from which (it is) produced

• origin', 'sambhūtam': 'arisen

• produced', 'yathā': 'how

• in what manner', 'viśeṣa-guṇakārī': 'producing special qualities/benefits

• exceptionally efficacious', 'tat sarvam': 'all that', 'bravīmi': 'I tell

• I explain', 'śṛṇu': 'listen (imperative)', 'me': 'to me

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhishma
• Mahabaho (addressee, traditionally Yudhishthira)
• Suvarṇa (gold)
• Dāna (charitable gift)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Bhishma teaches that giving gold (suvarṇa-dāna) is regarded as among the सर्वोत्तम (best) forms of charity, yielding ‘uttama phala’—a superior ethical and spiritual result—when done with the proper intention and understanding of its significance.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Anushasana Parva’s instruction on dharma, Bhishma addresses the listener (commonly Yudhiṣṭhira) and introduces a focused teaching: he will explain the nature, origin, and special efficacy of gold, to justify why gold-gifting is praised as an excellent dāna.