Shloka 37
Pitṛ-śrāddha-haviḥ-phala-nirdeśa
Offerings for Ancestors and Their Stated Results
अनुग्रहं तु नागानां यं चक्रुः शृणु तं प्रभो । देवा भृगुकुलश्रेष्ठ प्रीत्या सत्यपराक्रमा:,प्रभो! भृगुकुलश्रेष्ठ तब सत्यपराक्रमी देवताओंने प्रसन्न हो नागोंपर जिस प्रकार अपना अनुग्रह प्रकट किया, उसे सुनो
anugrahaṃ tu nāgānāṃ yaṃ cakruḥ śṛṇu taṃ prabho | devā bhṛgukulaśreṣṭha prītyā satyaparākramāḥ ||
Bhīṣma nói: “Hỡi chúa tể, hãy nghe ân huệ mà các thần—dũng mãnh trong chân thật—đã ban cho loài Nāga vì lòng thiện chí. Hỡi bậc tối thượng của dòng Bhṛgu, hãy nghe cách họ, khi đã hoan hỷ, bày tỏ ân sủng đối với giống rắn.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
That divine favor (anugraha) is portrayed as responding to goodwill and worthiness; the verse frames grace as purposeful and ethically meaningful, not random—an invitation to learn how right conduct and pleasing disposition can draw benevolent support.
Bhīṣma transitions into a story: he tells his listener—addressed as ‘prabho’ and ‘best of the Bhṛgu line’—to hear how the gods, pleased, granted a particular favor to the Nāgas. This verse serves as the introduction to that account.