Shloka 127

मानसतीर्थ-शौचप्रशंसा | Praise of the ‘Mental Tīrtha’ and the Marks of Purity

Devanagari script

यस्तु मासे गते भुड्क्ते एकभक्तं शमात्मक:

Transliteration

yas tu māse gate bhuṅkte ekabhaktaṃ śamātmakaḥ

Translation

ਭੀਸ਼ਮ ਨੇ ਆਖਿਆ—ਜੋ ਇੱਕ ਮਹੀਨਾ ਬੀਤਣ ਉਪਰੰਤ ਕੇਵਲ ਇੱਕ ਵਾਰ ਭੋਜਨ ਕਰਦਾ ਹੈ, ਸੰਯਮੀ ਅਤੇ ਸ਼ਾਂਤ ਸੁਭਾਵ ਵਾਲਾ ਹੋ ਕੇ, ਧਰਮਿਕ ਵਰਤ ਵਿੱਚ ਨਿਯਮਬੱਧ ਸੰਯਮ ਦਾ ਆਚਰਨ ਕਰਦਾ ਹੈ।

Word by Word

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

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

• मासे: in a month
• मासे: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: मास (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Locative, Singular

• गते: when (it) has passed / after (it) has elapsed
• गते: Adhikarana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: गम् (धातु) → गत (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Locative, Singular

• भुङ्क्ते: eats/partakes
• Type: Verb
• Root: भुज् (धातु)
• Form: Present, Third, Singular, Ātmanepada

• एकभक्तम्: a single meal (once-a-day food)
• एकभक्तम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: एक + भक्त (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• शमात्मकः: having tranquility as his nature / self-controlled
• शमात्मकः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शम + आत्मन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhīṣma

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse praises disciplined restraint—specifically the practice of limiting oneself to a single daily meal after a set period—grounded in inner calm and self-control, presenting austerity as an ethical tool for purification and steadiness in dharma.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bhīṣma continues his instruction on dharma and religious observances, describing a particular mode of regulated eating (ekabhakta) as part of a vow, emphasizing the practitioner’s tranquil, self-governed disposition.