Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 286
Vānaprastha-dharma and Tapas: Śiva–Umā Saṃvāda
Forest-Stage Discipline and Austerity
पितृणां त्रिषु सर्वेषां निरुक्त कथितं त्वया । देवदूतने पूछा--पितृगण! आपलोगोंने क्रमश: पिण्डोंका विभाग बतलाया और तीनों लोकोंमें जो समस्त पितर हैं, उनको पिण्डदान करनेका शास्त्रोक्त प्रकार भी बतला दिया
pitṝṇāṃ triṣu sarveṣāṃ niruktaṃ kathitaṃ tvayā |
Wika ng sugo ng mga diyos: “Maliwanag mong naipaliwanag ang itinakdang aral tungkol sa lahat ng Pitṛ sa tatlong daigdig.” Sa diwa ng salaysay, kinikilala nito na ang mga ritwal gaya ng pag-aalay ng piṇḍa ay naituro nang wasto at ayon sa tamang pagkakasunod, na binibigyang-diin na ang dharma ay napangangalagaan sa pamamagitan ng wastong kaalaman at nararapat na pagtupad sa tungkuling pang-ninuno.
देवदूत उवाच
Educational Q&A
That ancestral duties (such as śrāddha and piṇḍa-offerings) should be learned and performed according to śāstra; correct articulation and orderly explanation of dharma is itself praised as a virtue.
A divine messenger addresses the Pitṛs (or the instructing party) and acknowledges that the teaching about all Pitṛs across the three worlds has been properly explained—serving as a transition/affirmation within the discourse on śrāddha and piṇḍa-dāna.