Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 806
Vānaprastha-dharma and Tapas: Śiva–Umā Saṃvāda
Forest-Stage Discipline and Austerity
तमोरूपं न तस्यास्ति दीपकं य: प्रयच्छति । वर्षा-ऋतुमें दीपदान करनेसे मनुष्य चन्द्रमाके समान शोभा पाता है। जो दीपदान करता है, उसके लिये नरकका अन्धकार है ही नहीं
tamorūpaṃ na tasyāsti dīpakaṃ yaḥ prayacchati |
Ipinahayag ni Śakra (Indra): “Sa taong nagkakaloob ng lampara bilang handog, wala nang dilim na anyo ng impiyerno para sa kanya.” Lalo na kung sa panahon ng tag-ulan inihahandog ang ilaw, nakakamit ng nagbibigay ang ningning na tulad ng buwan—hudyat ng pagtaboy sa panglaw at pagkamal ng mapalad na liwanag na bunga ng mahabaging pagbibigay.
शक्र उवाच
Educational Q&A
Giving a lamp (dīpadāna) is praised as a dharmic act that symbolically and karmically dispels darkness; the donor gains radiance and is protected from the ‘darkness’ associated with hellish suffering.
Śakra (Indra) is speaking in a didactic context, commending the merit of charitable giving—specifically the gifting of a lamp—by stating that such a giver does not encounter darkness (understood as the darkness of naraka), and is likened to the moon in splendor.