मार्कंडेय उवाच । सत्यमेतन्महाभाग यत्पृष्टोऽस्मि नृपोत्तम । श्राद्धस्य बहवो भेदाः शाखाभेदैर्व्यवस्थिताः
mārkaṃḍeya uvāca | satyametanmahābhāga yatpṛṣṭo'smi nṛpottama | śrāddhasya bahavo bhedāḥ śākhābhedairvyavasthitāḥ
Disse Mārkaṇḍeya: É verdade, ó afortunado, ó melhor dos reis, que me perguntes isto; pois o rito de śrāddha possui muitas formas, estabelecidas conforme as diferenças entre as śākhās védicas.
Mārkaṇḍeya
Listener: Rohitāśva
Scene: Mārkaṇḍeya responds with assurance, validating the king’s question and explaining that śrāddha variations arise from different Vedic schools; the assembly relaxes into attentive learning.
Dharma accommodates legitimate diversity; ritual differences can be valid when rooted in recognized śākhā-traditions.
No particular tīrtha is named; the Mahātmya here pivots into dharma-teaching on ancestral rites.
That śrāddha has multiple sanctioned forms depending on Vedic śākhā, implying one should follow one’s own tradition.