Shloka 31
Vānaprastha-dharma and Tapas: Śiva–Umā Saṃvāda
Forest-Stage Discipline and Austerity
अत्र यस्त्वन्तिम: पिण्डो गच्छते जातवेदसम्
atra yas tv antimaḥ piṇḍo gacchate jātavedasam
Di sini, persembahan pengebumian yang terakhir (piṇḍa) dihantarkan kepada Jātavedas—Agni, api yang membawa persembahan—menandakan sempurnanya upacara terakhir, dengan menyerahkan si mendiang kepada tertib yang suci, dan yang hidup menunaikan dharma mereka terhadap yang telah pergi.
देवदूत उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores pitṛ-dharma: completing the final offering and entrusting it to Agni symbolizes the ethical duty of the living to perform proper last rites, ensuring ritual completeness and honoring the departed within the cosmic order.
A divine messenger (devadūta) describes a specific point in the funerary/śrāddha sequence: the ‘last piṇḍa’ is said to reach Jātavedas (Agni), marking the culmination of the offering as it is transferred through fire to the intended sacred recipients.