Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 3536
सर्वसंकरपापेभ्यो देवतास्तवनन्दक: । जो मनुष्य उपर्युक्त देवता आदिका कीर्तन
sarvasaṅkarapāpebhyo devatāstava-nandakaḥ | yo manuṣya uparyukta-devatādikāḥ kīrtana-stavana-abhinandanaṃ karoti, sa sarvaprakāra-pāpa-bhayāt mukto bhavati | devatānāṃ stutiṃ ca abhinandanaṃ ca kurvan puruṣaḥ sarvaprakāra-saṅkara-pāpebhyaḥ chūyate |
Wika ni Bhishma: “Ang taong nalulugod sa pagpupuri sa mga diyos—yaong bumibigkas, pumupuri, at magalang na sumasaludo sa mga diyos na nabanggit sa itaas—ay napapalaya sa lahat ng uri ng kasalanan at sa bawat takot. Ang nag-aalay ng mga himno at paggalang sa mga diyos ay nakakalaya sa lahat ng halu-halo at nakalilitong kasalanan.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Reverent devotion expressed through recitation (kīrtana), praise (stavana/stuti), and respectful salutation (abhinandana) toward the deities purifies a person, removing fear and freeing one from accumulated and ‘mixed’ sins that entangle moral life.
In the Anuśāsana Parva, Bhīṣma continues his instruction on dharma, emphasizing devotional practice. Here he states the spiritual and ethical benefit of honoring the gods previously listed in the discourse: such worshipful praise leads to purification and release from sin and fear.