Shloka 1
अन्नदानफलं (Anna-dāna-phala) / The Fruit of Food-Giving
(दाक्षिणात्य अधिक पावका ई “लोक मिलाकर कुल २१३ “लोक हैं) भीस्न्आ+ज (2) आसन मना नवाधिकशततमो<्ध्याय: प्रत्येक मासकी द्वादशशी तिथिको उपवास और भगवान् विष्णुकी पूजा करनेका विशेष माहात्म्य युधिछिर उवाच सर्वेषामुपवासानां यच्छेय: सुमहत्फलम् । यच्चाप्यसंशयं लोके तनमे त्वं वक्तुमहसि
Yudhiṣṭhira uvāca: Sarveṣām upavāsānāṁ yac chreyaḥ sumahat phalam | yac cāpy asaṁśayaṁ loke tan me tvaṁ vaktum arhasi ||
युधिष्ठिर म्हणाला— पितामह! सर्व उपवासांमध्ये जो सर्वश्रेष्ठ व महाफलदायी आहे, आणि ज्याविषयी लोकांत कोणताही संशय नाही—तो मला सांगावा।
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a dharmic inquiry: among many religious observances, one should seek the practice that is both supremely beneficial (śreyaḥ, sumahat phalam) and socially/śāstrically uncontested (asaṁśayam). It highlights discernment in choosing vows, not mere ritual variety.
In the Anuśāsana Parva’s instruction-setting, Yudhiṣṭhira addresses Bhīṣma as ‘pitāmaha’ and asks him to identify the most excellent and doubt-free form of fasting, preparing the ground for Bhīṣma’s subsequent exposition on a specific vrata/upavāsa and its merit.