Anushasana Parva Adhyaya 131 Shloka 24 - Mahabharata | Malay | Vedapath

Vyasa

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Shloka 24

Umā–Maheśvara-saṃvāda: Varṇa-bhraṃśa, Ācāra (Vṛtta), and Karmic Ascent/Decline

Devanagari script

धर्म उवाच राजपौरुषिके विप्रे घाण्टिके परिचारिके । गोरक्षके वाणिजके तथा कारुकुशीलवे

Transliteration

dharma uvāca rājapauruṣike vipre ghāṇṭike paricārike | gorakṣake vāṇijake tathā kārukuśīlave, piṇḍadāstasya hīyante na ca prīṇāti vai pitṝn |

Translation

Dharma berkata: “Wahai brāhmaṇa, jika seseorang hidup dengan khidmat kepada raja, atau mencari upah dengan membunyikan loceng, atau menjadi hamba suruhan; jika dia mencari nafkah dengan menjaga lembu, berniaga, atau dengan pertukangan dan persembahan—maka sesiapa yang memberikan piṇḍa (persembahan arwah) kepada orang sedemikian akan merosot pahalanya, dan para leluhur tidak akan berpuas hati.”

Word by Word

धर्मःDharma (personified)

उवाचsaid

राजपौरुषिकेin/with one who is a king's servant/retainer

विप्रेin/with a brahmin

घाण्टिकेin/with a bell-ringer

परिचारिकेin/with an attendant/servant

गोरक्षकेin/with a cowherd/cattle-keeper

वाणिजकेin/with a trader/merchant

तथाand likewise

कारुकुशीलवेin/with an artisan and an actor/bard

पिण्डदाःgivers of piṇḍa (funeral offering)

तस्यof him/of that (such a person)

हीयन्तेdecline / suffer loss

नnot

चand

प्रीणातिsatisfies/pleases

वैindeed

पितॄन्the ancestors (pitṛs)

Speaker

धर्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

Dharma

vipra (brāhmaṇa)

pitṛs (ancestors)

piṇḍa (śrāddha offering)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse teaches that the efficacy of ancestral offerings (piṇḍa/śrāddha) depends not only on the giver’s intent but also on the ritual fitness of the recipient; giving śrāddha offerings to certain livelihood-groups is said to diminish the giver’s merit and fail to satisfy the ancestors.

What is happening in the narrative?

Dharma is laying down prescriptive norms for pitṛ-kārya (ancestral rites) within a broader Anuśāsana-parvan discussion on dharma, specifying categories of people to whom śrāddha offerings should not be given, and stating the negative consequence for the giver and the pitṛs.