Shloka 3
निवापैर्दीयमानैश्न चातुर्वण्येन भारत । तर्पिता: पितरो देवास्तत्रान्नं जरयन्ति वै
nivāpairdīyamānaiś ca cāturvarṇyena bhārata | tarpitāḥ pitaro devās tatrānnaṃ jarayanti vai ||
Bhīṣma disse: “Ó Bhārata, quando as oferendas funerárias (nivāpa) são devidamente dadas pelas quatro ordens sociais, os Pitṛs e os deuses ficam satisfeitos; e ali, de fato, eles partilham desse alimento e o ‘digerem’.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that properly performed ancestral offerings (nivāpa/śrāddha), carried out in accordance with one’s dharma within the four varṇas, sustain a moral and ritual reciprocity: humans honor ancestors and gods through offerings, and those recipients are said to accept and assimilate the offered food.
Bhīṣma is instructing Yudhiṣṭhira in Anuśāsana Parva on duties connected with rites and dharma. Here he explains the efficacy of nivāpa/śrāddha: when such offerings are given, the Pitṛs and the gods become satisfied and are described as consuming the offering.