Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 453
उपवासफलात्मकविधिः — Upavāsa as Yajña-Equivalent Merit
Angiras Teaching
गवामयस्यथ यज्ञस्य फल प्राप्नोति मानव: । नरेश्वर! जो मनुष्य चार दिनोंपर भोजन करता हुआ एक वर्षतक जीवन धारण करता है, उसे गवामय यज्ञका फल प्राप्त होता है
gavāmayasya yathā yajñasya phalaṁ prāpnoti mānavaḥ | nareśvara! yo manuṣyaś catur-dineṣu bhojanaṁ kurvan eka-varṣaṁ yāvat jīvanaṁ dhārayati, sa gavāmaya-yajñasya phalaṁ prāpnoti |
Wika ni Aṅgiras: “O hari! Ang tao’y nakakamit ang kaparehong gantimpala ng handog na Gavāmaya. Kung ang isang lalaki, sa loob ng isang buong taon, ay nagtataguyod ng buhay na minsan lamang kumain sa bawat apat na araw, matatamo niya ang bunga ng yajña na Gavāmaya.”
अंगियरा उवाच
Educational Q&A
Sustained self-restraint and disciplined austerity can yield spiritual merit comparable to major Vedic sacrifices; inner practice is presented as an alternative path to ritual fruit.
The sage Aṅgirā addresses a king and explains a specific austerity—eating only once every four days for a year—stating that it grants the same reward as performing the Gavāmaya sacrifice.