Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 138
Pitṛ-śrāddha-haviḥ-phala-nirdeśa
Offerings for Ancestors and Their Stated Results
ब्रह्मा पितामह: पूर्व देवताभि: प्रसादित: । इमे नः संतरिष्यन्ति प्रजाभिर्जगती श्वरा:
brahmā pitāmahaḥ pūrvaṁ devatābhiḥ prasāditaḥ | ime naḥ santariṣyanti prajābhir jagatīśvarāḥ ||
瓦西什塔说道：“在往昔，诸天使祖父梵天（Brahmā）欢喜，祈求道：‘主宰啊，愿你施恩，使婆利古等圣者的后裔在护持大地之时，凭其子孙后代解救我们脱离困厄。愿他们皆为生主（Prajāpati），皆为大苦行者。承你恩泽，于此时他们将拯救整个世界脱离危难。’”
वसिष्ठ उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights a dharmic model of world-sustaining leadership: through divine grace, righteous lineages arise whose rulers and ascetics protect the earth and, by their progeny and disciplined conduct, help avert collective संकट (crisis). It links cosmic stability to tapas, responsible governance, and continuity of virtuous descendants.
Vasiṣṭha recounts an ancient episode: the gods approach Brahmā and propitiate him, requesting that certain great lineages (described in the gloss as descendants of Bhṛgu and others) be empowered to rule as world-protectors and to generate progeny who will help deliver the gods and the world from a looming danger.