Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 12
उपवासफलात्मकविधिः — Upavāsa as Yajña-Equivalent Merit
Angiras Teaching
वैश्या: शूद्राश्न यन्मोहादुपवासं प्रचक्रिरे । त्रिरात्रं वा द्विरात्रं वा तयोव््युष्टिन विद्यते,वैश्यों और शूद्रोंने जो मोहवश तीन रात अथवा दो रातका उपवास किया है, उसका उन्हें कोई फल नहीं मिला है
vaiśyāḥ śūdrāś ca yan mohād upavāsaṃ pracakrire | trirātraṃ vā dvirātraṃ vā tayoḥ vyuṣṭir na vidyate ||
安吉罗说道：“凡吠舍与首陀罗出于迷妄而行的斋戒——无论三夜或两夜——皆不得由此积得任何灵性之果。”
अंगियरा उवाच
Educational Q&A
Austerity such as fasting yields merit only when performed with right understanding and proper intention; when done “from delusion” (mohāt), it is portrayed as spiritually unproductive.
The sage Aṅgiras is instructing about dharma and the efficacy of religious observances, stating that certain fasts undertaken by Vaiśyas and Śūdras out of confusion do not produce the intended religious result.