Shloka 8
अलोभोपाख्यानम् — शुनःसख-यातुधानी-संवादः
The Allegory of Non-Greed: Śunaḥsakha and the Yātudhānī
भरतनन्दन! सोमके कहनेसे वे पितरोंसहित देवता मैरुपर्वतके शिखरपर विराजमान ब्रह्माजीके पास गये ।।
bharatanandana! somakena ukte te pitaraiḥ saha devāḥ meruparvataśikhare virājamānaṃ brahmāṇaṃ samupajagmuḥ. pitarā ūcuḥ—nivāpānnena bhagavan bhṛśaṃ pīḍyāmahe vayam; prasādaṃ kuru no deva, śreyo naḥ saṃvidhīyatām.
毗湿摩说：“噢婆罗多的后裔！依苏摩之请，诸天与祖灵（Pitṛ）一同前往梅鲁山巅，拜见端坐其上的梵天。祖灵们说道：‘世尊啊，我们因不断受用祭祖施食（śrāddha）的供品（nivāpa）而深受困扰。愿神明垂怜，替我们安排真正有益之道。’”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even sacred rites like śrāddha must be aligned with genuine welfare (śreyas). The verse frames ritual not as mechanical consumption but as something overseen by divine order and responsive to the well-being of those it is meant to benefit—hence the Pitṛs seek Brahmā’s guidance for a truly beneficial arrangement.
Prompted by Somaka’s request, the gods and the ancestral Pitṛs go to Brahmā on Mount Meru. The Pitṛs report that constant intake of śrāddha offerings (nivāpa) is causing them distress and ask Brahmā to show grace and establish a better, welfare-producing solution.