Shloka 36
मानसतीर्थ-शौचप्रशंसा | Praise of the ‘Mental Tīrtha’ and the Marks of Purity
यस्तु संवत्सरं क्षान्तो भुड्क्तेडहन्यष्टमे नर:
yastu saṁvatsaraṁ kṣānto bhuṅkte ’hany aṣṭame naraḥ, devatānāṁ kāryeṣu tatparaḥ san nityam agnihotraṁ ca juhoti, tasmai pauṇḍarīka-yāgasya śreṣṭhatamaṁ phalaṁ prāpyate
भीष्म उवाच—यस्तु संवत्सरं कृत्स्नं सर्वेषु क्षान्तिमान् भवेत्। अष्टमेऽहनि भुञ्जानो देवकार्यपरायणः॥ नित्यं चाग्निहोत्रं कुर्वन् स पौण्डरीकयज्ञस्य फलमनुत्तमं प्राप्नोति।
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Sustained forgiveness, disciplined austerity (eating only once every eight days), and faithful performance of daily sacred duties—especially Agnihotra—are presented as powerful means of earning the highest religious merit, comparable to the best fruit of a great sacrifice.
In Bhishma’s instruction on dharma, he describes a specific year-long vow combining restraint, patience, and ritual observance, and he states the exalted spiritual reward that accrues from such conduct.