Shloka 10
Chapter 84: Brahmā’s Counsel on Tāraka, the Search for Agni, and the Genesis of Skanda
Kārttikeya
किं च यज्ञस्य यज्ञत्वं क्व च यज्ञ: प्रतिष्ठित: । देवानामुत्तमं कि च कि च सत्रमित: परम्
kiṃ ca yajñasya yajñatvaṃ kva ca yajñaḥ pratiṣṭhitaḥ | devānām uttamaṃ kiṃ ca kiṃ ca satram itaḥ param ||
毗湿摩提出一连串探问祭祀内义的深刻问题：究竟是什么使一项仪式真正称得上“祭”（yajña）？祭祀立足于何种根基？对诸天而言，何者为至上之善？又有何种祭仪之行（萨特拉，satra）被认为甚至超越于此？这些问题把讨论从徒具形式的仪轨执行，引向赋予仪式以道德与灵性正当性的原则与宗旨。
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a dharmic inquiry: ritual is not self-justifying; its true status as ‘yajña’ depends on the principle that grounds it (its pratiṣṭhā) and the highest aim it serves. It invites evaluation of sacrifice by inner essence and ethical-spiritual purpose rather than by external form alone.
In the Anuśāsana Parva’s instruction on dharma, Bhishma poses a sequence of questions to guide the listener toward a deeper understanding of sacrificial practice—what defines yajña, what supports it, what benefits the gods most, and what observance surpasses even standard sacrificial rites.