Shloka 9
अग्निशाप-प्रसंगः
Agni’s Curse and the Restoration of Ritual Order
देवता: पितरस्तस्मात् पितरश्नापि देवता: । एकीभूताश्न पूज्यन्ते पृथक्त्वेन च पर्वसु,“अत: देवता पितर हैं और पितर ही देवता हैं। विभिन्न पर्वोपर ये दोनों एक रूपमें भी पूजे जाते हैं और पृथक्-पृथक् भी
devatāḥ pitaras tasmāt pitaro 'pi devatāḥ | ekībhūtāś ca pūjyante pṛthaktvena ca parvasu ||
Śaunaka disse: “Portanto, os deuses são (em essência) os Pais, os Pitṛs; e os Pitṛs também são deuses. Nas observâncias e ocasiões sagradas (parvan), são venerados às vezes como uma única realidade unificada e, outras vezes, como distintos—cada qual em sua própria forma.”
शौनक उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches the essential continuity between divine worship (devatā) and ancestral reverence (pitṛ). In dharmic practice, honoring ancestors is not separate from honoring the divine; depending on the rite, they may be approached as a unified sacred reality or as distinct recipients of worship.
Śaunaka, in dialogue within the early frame narrative of the Mahābhārata, articulates a doctrinal point about ritual theology: during various parvans (sacred observances), gods and ancestors are worshipped either together as one or separately, explaining how different rites structure offerings and veneration.