Shloka 16

उपवासफलात्मकविधिः — Upavāsa as Yajña-Equivalent Merit

Angiras Teaching

Devanagari script

यजिष्णु: पञ्चमीं षष्ठीं कुले भोजयते द्विजान्‌ | अष्टमीमथ कौरव्य कृष्णपक्षे चतुर्दशीम्‌

Transliteration

yajiṣṇuḥ pañcamīṃ ṣaṣṭhīṃ kule bhojayate dvijān | aṣṭamīm atha kauravya kṛṣṇapakṣe caturdaśīm ||

Translation

安吉罗说：“笃行祭祀与圣职之人，于家族仪轨中在初五与初六供养婆罗门；噢，俱卢后裔啊，同样也在初八以及黑半月（kṛṣṇa-pakṣa）的第十四日行此施食。如此在吉祥的提提之日以款待扶持学者，以有节制的布施坚固达摩。”

Word by Word

• यजिष्णुः: one who is devoted to sacrifice / a sacrificer
• यजिष्णुः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: यजिष्णु (यज् धातु-निष्पन्न विशेषण)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• पञ्चमीम्: the fifth (day)
• पञ्चमीम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पञ्चम (क्रमवाचक)
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

• षष्ठीम्: the sixth (day)
• षष्ठीम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: षष्ठ (क्रमवाचक)
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

• कुले: in (his) family/lineage
• कुले: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: कुल
• Form: Neuter, Locative, Singular

• भोजयते: feeds / causes to eat / entertains with food
• भोजयते: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: भुज् (भोजयति—णिच्)
• Form: Present, Third, Singular, Ātmanepada

• द्विजान्: Brahmins (lit. twice-born)
• द्विजान्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: द्विज
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Plural

• अष्टमीम्: the eighth (day)
• अष्टमीम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अष्टम (क्रमवाचक)
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

• अथ: then / moreover
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अथ

• कौरव्य: O descendant of Kuru
• Type: Noun
• Root: कौरव्य
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

• कृष्णपक्षे: in the dark fortnight (waning half of the month)
• कृष्णपक्षे: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: कृष्णपक्ष
• Form: Masculine, Locative, Singular

• चतुर्दशीम्: the fourteenth (day)
• चतुर्दशीम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: चतुर्दश (क्रमवाचक)
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

Speaker

अंगियरा उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Aṅgiras
• Kauravya (Kuru-line addressee)
• dvija (Brahmins/twice-born)
• kṛṣṇapakṣa (dark fortnight)
• pañcamī
• ṣaṣṭhī
• aṣṭamī
• caturdaśī

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse teaches that dharma is upheld through disciplined generosity: feeding learned Brahmins on specific lunar days (tithis) as part of family observance. Regular, rule-governed giving and hospitality are presented as a concrete practice of righteousness.

What is happening in the narrative?

The sage Aṅgiras is instructing a Kuru-descended listener about prescribed days for hosting and feeding Brahmins—fifth, sixth, eighth, and the fourteenth day of the dark fortnight—within the broader Anuśāsana Parva discourse on duties, gifts, and religious observances.