Shloka 13
उपवासफलात्मकविधिः — Upavāsa as Yajña-Equivalent Merit
Angiras Teaching
चतुर्थभक्तक्षपणं वैश्ये शूद्रे विधीयते । त्रिरात्रं नतु धर्मजिविंहितं धर्मदर्शिभि:
caturthabhaktakṣapaṇaṃ vaiśye śūdre vidhīyate | trirātraṃ na tu dharmajīvihitaṃ dharmadarśibhiḥ ||
安吉罗说：“对于吠舍与首陀罗，所规定的赎罪之法，是舍弃第四次进食之时——也就是只需禁食两日两夜。洞见达摩的圣贤并未为他们立下三夜斋戒作为正行之常规。”
अंगियरा उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse states a differentiated rule of expiatory fasting: for Vaiśyas and Śūdras, the dharma-authorities prescribe a shorter fast (up to the ‘fourth meal-time,’ understood as two days and two nights), not the stricter three-night fast.
In Anuśāsana Parva’s instruction on dharma and penances, the sage Aṅgiras explains the appropriate duration of fasting as expiation for different social orders, clarifying that a three-night fast is not enjoined for Vaiśyas and Śūdras in this context.