Shloka 10
नहुषोपाख्यानम्—दीपदान-धूप-बलीकर्म-प्रशंसा
Nahūṣa Episode and the Commendation of Lamp-Gifting and Household Offerings
पितरश्न महाभागा ऋषयश्न तपोधना: । गृह्माश्व देवता: सर्वाः प्रीयन्ते विधिनार्चिता:
pitaraś ca mahābhāgā ṛṣayaś ca tapodhanāḥ | gṛhyāś ca devatāḥ sarvāḥ prīyante vidhinārcitāḥ ||
भीष्म उवाच— पितरः महाभागा ऋषयश्च तपोधनाः । गृह्याश्च देवताः सर्वाः प्रीयन्ते विधिनार्चिताः ॥ स्नात्वा विद्वान् पुरुषो देवादीन् प्रति नमस्कृत्य तर्पणादिकं कर्म यथाविधि करोति; तेन देवाः पितरश्च तपोधनाः ऋषयश्च सन्तुष्यन्ति, गृहदेवताश्च सर्वाः प्रसन्ना भवन्ति।
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Properly performed daily rites—especially bathing followed by reverent offerings like tarpaṇa—sustain dharma by pleasing gods, ancestors, and sages; ritual correctness (vidhi) and respectful intention are emphasized as ethical duties of a learned householder.
In Bhishma’s instruction on dharma, he explains to the listener that when one worships according to prescribed procedure, the Pitṛs, ṛṣis, and household deities become satisfied—highlighting the religious-social function of domestic worship and ancestral offerings.