Mahabharata — Volume IX (Dutt edition) — Chapter 90
MBh 9 90.1
युधिष्ठिर उवाच कीदृशेभ्यः प्रदातव्यं भवेच्छ्राद्धं पितामह। द्विजेभ्यः कुरुशार्दूल तन्मे व्याख्यातुमर्हसि॥
yudhiṣṭhira uvāca kīdṛśebhyaḥ pradātavyaṃ bhavecchrāddhaṃ pitāmaha| dvijebhyaḥ kuruśārdūla tanme vyākhyātumarhasi||
Yudhishthira said. You should, O foremnost one of Kuru's race, tell me to what kind of Brahmanas, O grandfather, should the offers made at Shraddhas, be given away.
— tr. M.N. Dutt (1891–96) (public domain)
MBh 9 90.2
भीष्म उवाच ब्राह्मणान् न परीक्षेत क्षत्रियो दानधर्मवित्। दैवे कर्मणि पित्र्ये तु न्यायमाहुः परीक्षणम्॥
bhīṣma uvāca brāhmaṇān na parīkṣeta kṣatriyo dānadharmavit| daive karmaṇi pitrye tu nyāyamāhuḥ parīkṣaṇam||
Bhishma said The Kshatriya who is conversant with the ordinances about gift, should never examine Brahmanas. In all matters, however, relating to the worship of the deities and the departed Manes, an examination has been said to be proper.
— tr. M.N. Dutt (1891–96) (public domain)
MBh 9 90.3
देवताः यूजयन्तीह दैवेनैवेह तेजसा। उपेत्य तस्माद् देवेभ्यः सर्वेभ्यो दापयेन्नरः॥
devatāḥ yūjayantīha daivenaiveha tejasā| upetya tasmād devebhyaḥ sarvebhyo dāpayennaraḥ||
The deities are adored on Earth by men only when they are filled with devotion originating from the celestials themselves. Hence, one should, approaching them, make gifts to all Brahmanas, respecting such gifts as are made to the celestial themselves.
— tr. M.N. Dutt (1891–96) (public domain)
MBh 9 90.4
श्राद्धे त्वथ महाराज परीक्षेद् ब्राह्मणान् बुधः। कुलशीलवयोरूपैर्विद्ययाभिजनेन च॥
śrāddhe tvatha mahārāja parīkṣed brāhmaṇān budhaḥ| kulaśīlavayorūpairvidyayābhijanena ca||
In Shraddhas, however, O king, the man of intelligence should examine the Brahmanas. Such examination should be about their birth, conduct, age, appearance, and learning.
— tr. M.N. Dutt (1891–96) (public domain)
MBh 9 90.5
तेषामन्ये पङ्क्तिदूषास्तथान्ये पङ्क्तिपावनाः। अपाङ्क्तेयास्तु ये राजन् कीर्तयिष्यामि तान् शृणु॥
teṣāmanye paṅktidūṣāstathānye paṅktipāvanāḥ| apāṅkteyāstu ye rājan kīrtayiṣyāmi tān śṛṇu||
Amongst the Brahmanas there are some who pollute the line and some who purify it. Listen to me, O king, as I tell you those Brahmanas are that should be excluded from the line.
— tr. M.N. Dutt (1891–96) (public domain)
MBh 9 90.6
कितवो भ्रूणहा यक्ष्मी पशुपालो निराकृतिः। ग्रामप्रेष्यो वार्धषिको गायनः सर्वविक्रयी।॥ अगारदाही गरदः कुण्डाशी सोमविक्रयी। सामुद्रिको राजभृत्यस्तैलिकः कूटकारकः॥ पित्रा विवदमानश्च यस्य चोपपतिहे। अभिशस्तस्तथा स्तेनः शिल्पं यश्चोपजीवति॥ पर्वकारच सूची च मित्रधुक पारदारिकः। अवतानामुपाध्यायः काण्डपृष्ठस्तथैव च॥ श्वभिश्च यः परिक्रामेद् यः शुना दष्ट एव च। परिवित्तिश्च यश्च स्याद् दुश्चर्मा गुरुतल्पगः॥ कुशीलवो देवलको नक्षत्रैर्यश्च जीवति। ईदृशैर्ब्राह्मणैर्भुक्तमपाङ्क्तेयैर्युधिष्ठिर।॥ रक्षांसि गच्छते हव्यमित्याहुर्ब्रह्मवादिनः।
kitavo bhrūṇahā yakṣmī paśupālo nirākṛtiḥ| grāmapreṣyo vārdhaṣiko gāyanaḥ sarvavikrayī||| agāradāhī garadaḥ kuṇḍāśī somavikrayī| sāmudriko rājabhṛtyastailikaḥ kūṭakārakaḥ|| pitrā vivadamānaśca yasya copapatihe| abhiśastastathā stenaḥ śilpaṃ yaścopajīvati|| parvakāraca sūcī ca mitradhuka pāradārikaḥ| avatānāmupādhyāyaḥ kāṇḍapṛṣṭhastathaiva ca|| śvabhiśca yaḥ parikrāmed yaḥ śunā daṣṭa eva ca| parivittiśca yaśca syād duścarmā gurutalpagaḥ|| kuśīlavo devalako nakṣatrairyaśca jīvati| īdṛśairbrāhmaṇairbhuktamapāṅkteyairyudhiṣṭhira||| rakṣāṃsi gacchate havyamityāhurbrahmavādinaḥ|
He who is wily, or he who is guilty of foeticide, or he who is ill of consumption, or he who keeps animals, or he who has no Vedic study, or is a common servant of a village, or lives upon usury, or he who is a singer, or he who sells all articles, or he who is guilty of arson, or he who is a poisoner, or he who is a pimp by profession, or he who sells Soma, or he who teaches palmistry, or he who is in the employ of the king, or he who is a seller or oil, or he who is a cheat and false swearer, or he who has quarrel with his father, or he who tolerates a paramour of his wife, or he who has been cursed, or he who is a theif, or he who lives by some mechanical art, or he who puts on disguises, or he who is deceitful in his conduct, or he who is hostile to those he calls his friends, or he who is an adulterer, or he who is a preceptor of Shudras, or he who has taken up the profession of arms, or he who wanders with dogs (for hunting), or he who has been bit by a dog, or he who has married before his older brothers, or he who scems to have undergone circumcision, he who violates the bed of his preceptor, he who is an actor or mime, he who lives by setting up an idol, and he who lives by calculating the conjunctions of stars and planets and asterisms, are considered as fit to be excluded from the line. Persons knowing the Vedas say that the offerings made at Shraddhas, if eaten by such Brahmanas, jo to fill the stomachs of Rakshasas, O Yudhishthira.
— tr. M.N. Dutt (1891–96) (public domain)
MBh 9 90.7
श्राद्धं भुक्त्वा त्वधीयीत वृषलीतल्पगश्च यः॥ पुरीषे तस्य ते मासं पितरस्तस्य शेरते। सोमविक्रयिणे विष्ठा भिषजे पूयशोणितम्॥
śrāddhaṃ bhuktvā tvadhīyīta vṛṣalītalpagaśca yaḥ|| purīṣe tasya te māsaṃ pitarastasya śerate| somavikrayiṇe viṣṭhā bhiṣaje pūyaśoṇitam||
That person who having eaten at a Shraddha does not abstain that day from Vedic studies, or who has known that day a Shudra woman, must know that his departed Manes on account of such deeds of his, have to lie for a month on his own excreta.
— tr. M.N. Dutt (1891–96) (public domain)
MBh 9 90.8
नष्टं देवलके दत्तमप्रतिष्ठं च वाधुषे। यत्तु वाणिजके दत्तं नेह नामुत्र तद् भवेत्॥ भस्मनीव हुतं हव्यं तथा पौनर्भवे द्विजे। ये तु धर्मव्यपेतेषु चारित्रापगतेषु च। हव्यं कव्यं प्रयच्छन्ति तेषां तत्प्रेत्य नश्यति॥
naṣṭaṃ devalake dattamapratiṣṭhaṃ ca vādhuṣe| yattu vāṇijake dattaṃ neha nāmutra tad bhavet|| bhasmanīva hutaṃ havyaṃ tathā paunarbhave dvije| ye tu dharmavyapeteṣu cāritrāpagateṣu ca| havyaṃ kavyaṃ prayacchanti teṣāṃ tatpretya naśyati||
The offerings made at Shraddhas if presented to a Brahmana who sells wine, become converted into human excreta; if presented to a Brahmana who practises as a physician, they become converted into puss and blood; if presented to one who lives by setting up an idol, they fail to produce any fruit; if presented to one who lives upon usury, they lead to infamy; if presented to one who is engaged in trade, they become productive of no fruits cither in this world or in the next. If presented to a Brahmana who is born of a widowed mother, they become as fruitless as libations poured on ashes.
— tr. M.N. Dutt (1891–96) (public domain)
MBh 9 90.9
ज्ञानपूर्वं तु ये तेभ्यः प्रयच्छन्त्यल्पबुद्धयः। पुरीषं भुञ्जते तेषां पितरः प्रेत्य निश्चयः॥
jñānapūrvaṃ tu ye tebhyaḥ prayacchantyalpabuddhayaḥ| purīṣaṃ bhuñjate teṣāṃ pitaraḥ pretya niścayaḥ||
They who present the Havya and Kavya to such Brahmanas who do not perform the duties ordained for them and who do not observe those rules of good conduct that persons of their order should observe, find such presents productive of no merits hereafter.
— tr. M.N. Dutt (1891–96) (public domain)
MBh 9 90.10
एतानिमान् विजानीयादपाङ्क्तेयान् द्विजाधमान्। शूद्राणामुपदेशं च ये कुर्वन्त्यल्पचेतसः॥
etānimān vijānīyādapāṅkteyān dvijādhamān| śūdrāṇāmupadeśaṃ ca ye kurvantyalpacetasaḥ||
That littlewitted man who makes gifts of such articles to such men knowing their dispositions, obliges, by such conduct, his departed Manes to eat human excreta in the next world.
— tr. M.N. Dutt (1891–96) (public domain)
MBh 9 90.11
षष्टिं काणः शतं षण्ढः श्वित्री यावत्प्रपश्यति। पड्क्त्यां समुपविष्टायां तावद् दूषयते नृप॥
ṣaṣṭiṃ kāṇaḥ śataṃ ṣaṇḍhaḥ śvitrī yāvatprapaśyati| paḍktyāṃ samupaviṣṭāyāṃ tāvad dūṣayate nṛpa||
You should know that these wretched Brahmanas deserve to be excluded from the line. Those Brahmanas also of little energy who are engaged in instructing Shudras belong to the same class.
— tr. M.N. Dutt (1891–96) (public domain)
MBh 9 90.12
यद् वेष्टितशिरा भुङ्क्ते यद् भुङ्क्ते दक्षिणामुखः। सोपानत्कश्च यद् भुङ्क्ते सर्वे विद्यात् तदासुरम्॥
yad veṣṭitaśirā bhuṅkte yad bhuṅkte dakṣiṇāmukhaḥ| sopānatkaśca yad bhuṅkte sarve vidyāt tadāsuram||
A Brahmana who is blind stains sixty individuals of the line, one who is destitute of manly powers stains a hundred; while one who is afflicted with white leprosy stains as many as he looks upon, O king.
— tr. M.N. Dutt (1891–96) (public domain)
MBh 9 90.13
असूयता च यद् दत्तं यच्च श्रद्धाविवर्जितम्। सर्वं तदसुरेन्द्राय ब्रह्मा भागमकल्पयत्॥
asūyatā ca yad dattaṃ yacca śraddhāvivarjitam| sarvaṃ tadasurendrāya brahmā bhāgamakalpayat||
Whatever offerings made at Shraddhas are eaten by one with his head wrapped round with a cloth, whatever is eaten by one with face southwards, and whatever is eaten with shoes or sandals on, all goes to please the Asuras.
— tr. M.N. Dutt (1891–96) (public domain)
MBh 9 90.14
श्वानश्च पतिदूषाश्च नावेक्षेरन् कथंचन। तस्मात् परिसृते दद्यात् तिलांश्चान्ववकीरयेत्॥
śvānaśca patidūṣāśca nāvekṣeran kathaṃcana| tasmāt parisṛte dadyāt tilāṃścānvavakīrayet||
Whatever, again is given with malice, and whatever is given without respect, have been ordained by Brahman himself as the portion of the king of Asuras (viz., Bali.)
— tr. M.N. Dutt (1891–96) (public domain)
MBh 9 90.15
तिलैर्विरहितं श्राद्धं कृतं क्रोधवशेन च। यातुधानाः पिशाचाश्च विप्रलुम्पन्ति तद्धविः॥
tilairvirahitaṃ śrāddhaṃ kṛtaṃ krodhavaśena ca| yātudhānāḥ piśācāśca vipralumpanti taddhaviḥ||
Dogs, and such Brahmanas as are polluters of lines, should not be suffered to look upon the offerings made at Shraddhas performed at a place that is properly hedged around or concealed from the view. That spot should also be covered with sesame seeds.
— tr. M.N. Dutt (1891–96) (public domain)
MBh 9 90.16
अपाक्तो यावतः पाङ्क्तान् भुजानानुपश्यति। तावत्फलाद् भ्रंशयति दातारं तस्य बालिशम्॥
apākto yāvataḥ pāṅktān bhujānānupaśyati| tāvatphalād bhraṃśayati dātāraṃ tasya bāliśam||
That Shraddha which is done without sesame seeds, or that which is done by a person in anger, has its Havi robbed by Rakshasas and Pishachas.
— tr. M.N. Dutt (1891–96) (public domain)
MBh 9 90.17
इमे तु भरतश्रेष्ठ विज्ञेयाः पङ्क्तिपावनाः। ये त्वतस्तान् प्रवक्ष्यामि परीक्षस्वेह तान् द्विजान्।।२४
ime tu bharataśreṣṭha vijñeyāḥ paṅktipāvanāḥ| ye tvatastān pravakṣyāmi parīkṣasveha tān dvijān||24
According to the number of Brahmanas seen by one who deserves to be excluded from the line, is the loss of merit he causes of the foolish perforiner of the Shraddha who invites him to the feast.
— tr. M.N. Dutt (1891–96) (public domain)
MBh 9 90.18
विद्यावेदव्रतस्नाता ब्राह्मणाः सर्व एव हि। सदाचारपराश्चैव विज्ञेयाः सर्वपावनाः॥ पातेयांस्तु प्रवक्ष्यामि ज्ञेयास्ते पतितपावनाः। त्रिणाचिकेत: पञ्चाग्निस्त्रिसुपर्णः षडङ्गवित्॥ ब्रह्मदेयानुसंतानश्छन्दोगो ज्येष्ठसामगः। मातापित्रोर्यश्च वश्यः श्रोत्रियो दशपूरुषः॥ ऋतुकालाभिगामी च धर्मपत्नीषु यः सदा। वेदविद्याव्रतस्नातो विप्रः पङ्क्तिं पुनात्युत॥
vidyāvedavratasnātā brāhmaṇāḥ sarva eva hi| sadācāraparāścaiva vijñeyāḥ sarvapāvanāḥ|| pāteyāṃstu pravakṣyāmi jñeyāste patitapāvanāḥ| triṇāciketa: pañcāgnistrisuparṇaḥ ṣaḍaṅgavit|| brahmadeyānusaṃtānaśchandogo jyeṣṭhasāmagaḥ| mātāpitroryaśca vaśyaḥ śrotriyo daśapūruṣaḥ|| ṛtukālābhigāmī ca dharmapatnīṣu yaḥ sadā| vedavidyāvratasnāto vipraḥ paṅktiṃ punātyuta||
I shall now, O chief of Bharata's race, tell you who are purifiers of the line. Do you find them out by examination. All those Brahmanas who are purified by knowledge, Vedic study, vows and observances and they who are of good and righteous conduct, should be known as purifiers of everything. I shall now tell you who deserve to sit in the line. You should know them to be such whom I shall mark out presently. He who is conversant with the three Nachiketas, he who has set up the five sacrificial fires, he who knows the five Suparnas, he who knows the six branches (called Angas) of the Veda, he who is a descendant of fathers who were engaged in teaching the Vedas and is himself engaged in teaching, he who is well conversant with the Prosody, he who is acquainted with the Jeshthya Saman, he who is obedient to his parents, he who is conversant with the Vedas, and whose ancestors have been so for ten generations, he who knows only his married wives and this at their seasons, and he who has been purified by knowledge, by the Veda, and by vows and observances, even such a Brahmana, purifies the line.
— tr. M.N. Dutt (1891–96) (public domain)
MBh 9 90.19
अथर्वशिरसोऽध्येता ब्रह्मचारी यतव्रतः। सत्यवादी धर्मशीलः स्वकर्मनिरतश्च सः॥ ये च पुण्येषु तीर्थेषु अभिषेककृतश्रमाः। मखेषु च समन्त्रेषु भवन्त्यवभृथप्लुताः॥ अक्रोधना ह्यचपलाः क्षान्ता दान्ता जितेन्द्रियाः। सर्वभूतहिता ये च श्राद्धेष्वेतान् निमन्त्रयेत्॥ एतेषु दत्तमक्षय्यमेते वै पङ्क्तिपावनाः। इमे परे महाभागा विज्ञेयाः पङ्क्तिपावनाः॥
atharvaśiraso'dhyetā brahmacārī yatavrataḥ| satyavādī dharmaśīlaḥ svakarmanirataśca saḥ|| ye ca puṇyeṣu tīrtheṣu abhiṣekakṛtaśramāḥ| makheṣu ca samantreṣu bhavantyavabhṛthaplutāḥ|| akrodhanā hyacapalāḥ kṣāntā dāntā jitendriyāḥ| sarvabhūtahitā ye ca śrāddheṣvetān nimantrayet|| eteṣu dattamakṣayyamete vai paṅktipāvanāḥ| ime pare mahābhāgā vijñeyāḥ paṅktipāvanāḥ||
He who reads the Atharvashiras, who is given to the observance of Brahmacharya practices, and who is steady in the observance of righteous vows, who is truthful and of pure conduct, and who duly satisfies the duties laid down for his order, they also who have undergone fatigue and labour for bathing in the sacred waters, who have done the final bath after celebrating sacrifices sacrifices with proper Mantras, who are freed from anger, who are not restless, who are endued with forgiveness, who are self controlled masters of their senses, and they who are devoted to the behoof of all creatures, these should be invited to Shraddhas. arent HTATET EN: Partaga:1
— tr. M.N. Dutt (1891–96) (public domain)
MBh 9 90.20
ये चेतिहासं प्रयता: श्रावयन्ति द्विजोत्तमान्॥
ye cetihāsaṃ prayatā: śrāvayanti dvijottamān||
Anything given to these, becomes endless. These, indeed, are purifiers of lines. There are others also, highly blessed, who should be considered as purifiers of the line.
— tr. M.N. Dutt (1891–96) (public domain)
MBh 9 90.21
ये च भाष्यविदः केचिद् ये च व्याकरणे रताः। अधीयते पुराणं ये धर्मशास्त्राण्यथापि च॥
ye ca bhāṣyavidaḥ kecid ye ca vyākaraṇe ratāḥ| adhīyate purāṇaṃ ye dharmaśāstrāṇyathāpi ca||
They are are Yatis and those who are conversant with the religion of Emancipation, and they who are devoted to Yoga and they who properly observe excellent vows, and they who, with collected mind, recite (sacred) histories to fcremost of Brahmanas.
— tr. M.N. Dutt (1891–96) (public domain)
MBh 9 90.22
अधीत्य च यथान्यायं विधिवत् तय कारिणः। उपपन्नो गुरुकुले सत्यवादी सहस्रशः॥ अग्र्याः सर्वेषु वेदेषु सर्वप्रवचनेषु च। यावदेते प्रपश्यन्ति पड्क्त्यास्तावत्पुनन्त्युत॥
adhītya ca yathānyāyaṃ vidhivat taya kāriṇaḥ| upapanno gurukule satyavādī sahasraśaḥ|| agryāḥ sarveṣu vedeṣu sarvapravacaneṣu ca| yāvadete prapaśyanti paḍktyāstāvatpunantyuta||
They who conversant with commentaries, they also who are given to grammatical studies, they who study the Puranas and they who study, the Dharmashastras, and having studied them act up to the standard laid down in them, he who has lived in the house of his preceptor, he who if truthful in speech, he who is a giver of thousands, they that are foremost in Vedic lore and (in the knowledge of) the scriptural and are philosophical aphorisms, these purity the lines as far they look at it.
— tr. M.N. Dutt (1891–96) (public domain)
MBh 9 90.23
ततो हि पावनात्पङ्क्त्याः पङ्क्तिपावन उच्यते। क्रोशादर्घतृतीयाच्च पावयेदेक एव हि॥ ब्रह्मदेयानुसंतान इति ब्रह्मविदो विदुः। अनृत्विगनुपाध्यायः स चेदग्रासनं व्रजेत्॥
tato hi pāvanātpaṅktyāḥ paṅktipāvana ucyate| krośādarghatṛtīyācca pāvayedeka eva hi|| brahmadeyānusaṃtāna iti brahmavido viduḥ| anṛtviganupādhyāyaḥ sa cedagrāsanaṃ vrajet||
And because they purity all who sit in the line, therefore are they called purifiers of lines. Utterers of Brahma say that even a single person who happens to be the descendant of ancestors who were teachers of the Veda and who is himself a Vedic teacher, purifies full seven miles around him.
— tr. M.N. Dutt (1891–96) (public domain)
MBh 9 90.24
ऋत्विग्भिरभ्यनुज्ञातः पङ्क्त्या हरति दुष्कृतम्। अथ चेद् वेदवित् सर्वैःपङ्क्तिदोषैर्विवर्जितः॥
ṛtvigbhirabhyanujñātaḥ paṅktyā harati duṣkṛtam| atha ced vedavit sarvaiḥpaṅktidoṣairvivarjitaḥ||
If he who is not a Ritvik and that is not a Vedic teacher takes the foremost seat in a Shraddha, with even the permission of the other Ritviks there present, he is said to take the sins of all who may be sitting in the line.
— tr. M.N. Dutt (1891–96) (public domain)
MBh 9 90.25
न च स्यात् पतितो राजन् पङ्क्तिपावन एव सः। तस्मात् सर्वप्रयत्नेन परीक्ष्यामन्त्रयेद् द्विजान्॥
na ca syāt patito rājan paṅktipāvana eva saḥ| tasmāt sarvaprayatnena parīkṣyāmantrayed dvijān||
If, on the other hand, he happens to be conversant with the Vedas and freed from all those faults which are considered as capable of polluting the line, he shall not, o king, be considered as fallen, Such a man would then be really a purifier of the line.
— tr. M.N. Dutt (1891–96) (public domain)
MBh 9 90.26
स्वकर्मनिरतानन्यान् कुले जातान् बहुश्रुतान्। यस्य मित्रप्रधानानि श्राद्धानि च हवींषि च॥
svakarmaniratānanyān kule jātān bahuśrutān| yasya mitrapradhānāni śrāddhāni ca havīṃṣi ca||
For these reasons, O king, you should properly examine the Brahinanas before inviting them to Shraddhas. You should invite only such among them as are devoted to the duties laid down for their order, and as are born in good families, and as are gifted with great learning.
— tr. M.N. Dutt (1891–96) (public domain)
MBh 9 90.27
यस्य मित्रप्रधानानि श्राद्धानि च हवींषि च। न प्रीणन्ति पितॄन् देवान् स्वर्गं च न स गच्छति।।४१
yasya mitrapradhānāni śrāddhāni ca havīṃṣi ca| na prīṇanti pitṝn devān svargaṃ ca na sa gacchati||41
He who performs Shraddhas for feeding only his friends and whose Havi does not please the celestials and the departed Manes, fails to ascend to Heaven.
— tr. M.N. Dutt (1891–96) (public domain)
MBh 9 90.28
यश्च श्राद्ध कुरुते सङ्गत्तानि न देवयानेन पथा स याति। स वै मुक्तः पिप्पलं बन्धनाद् वा स्वर्गाल्लोकाच्च्यवते श्राद्धमित्रः॥ तस्मान्मित्रं श्राद्धकृन्नाद्रियेत दद्यान्मित्रेभ्यः संग्रहार्थं धनानि। यन्मन्यते नैव शत्रु न मित्रं तं मध्यस्थं भोजयेद्धव्यकव्य॥
yaśca śrāddha kurute saṅgattāni na devayānena pathā sa yāti| sa vai muktaḥ pippalaṃ bandhanād vā svargāllokāccyavate śrāddhamitraḥ|| tasmānmitraṃ śrāddhakṛnnādriyeta dadyānmitrebhyaḥ saṃgrahārthaṃ dhanāni| yanmanyate naiva śatru na mitraṃ taṃ madhyasthaṃ bhojayeddhavyakavya||
He who collects his friends and relatives only on the occasion of the Shraddha he performs, fails to proceed (after death) by the celestial path. The man who converts the Shraddha he performs, into an occasion for only collecting his friends, never succeeds in ascending to Heaven. The man who converts the Shraddha into an occasion for treating his friends, becomes alienated from Heaven even like a bird dissociated from the perch when the chain tying it breaks.
— tr. M.N. Dutt (1891–96) (public domain)
MBh 9 90.29
न चावता प्राप्नुयाद् बीजभागम्। न चेह नामुत्र फलं ददाति॥
na cāvatā prāpnuyād bījabhāgam| na ceha nāmutra phalaṃ dadāti||
Therefore, he who performs a Shraddha should not honour his friends. He may make gifts of riches to them on other occasions by collecting them together. The Havi and the Kavi offered at Shraddhas should be served to them who are neither friends nor enemies but are only indifferent or neutral.
— tr. M.N. Dutt (1891–96) (public domain)
MBh 9 90.30
ब्राह्मणो हनधीयानस्तृणाग्निरिव शाम्यति। तस्मै श्राद्धं न दातव्यं न हि भस्मनि हूयते॥
brāhmaṇo hanadhīyānastṛṇāgniriva śāmyati| tasmai śrāddhaṃ na dātavyaṃ na hi bhasmani hūyate||
As seed sown on a barren soil does not sprout forth, or as one who has not sown does not get a share of the produce, so that Shraddha the offerings in which are eaten by an unworthy person, yields no fruit either in this : world or in the next.
— tr. M.N. Dutt (1891–96) (public domain)
MBh 9 90.31
सम्भोजनी नाम पिशाचदक्षिणा सा नैव देवान् न पितृनुपैति। इहैव सा भ्राम्यति हीनपुण्या शालान्तरे गौरिव नष्टवत्सा॥
sambhojanī nāma piśācadakṣiṇā sā naiva devān na pitṛnupaiti| ihaiva sā bhrāmyati hīnapuṇyā śālāntare gauriva naṣṭavatsā||
That Brahmana who is destitute of Vedic study, is like a fire made by burning grass or straw; and becomes soon put out even like such a fire. The offerings inade at Shraddhas should not be given to him even as libations should not be poured on the ashes of the sacrificial fire.
— tr. M.N. Dutt (1891–96) (public domain)
MBh 9 90.32
यथाग्नौ शान्ते घृतमाजुहोति तन्नैव देवान् न पितृनुपैति। तथा दत्तं नर्तने गायने च यां चानृते दक्षिणामावृणोति॥
yathāgnau śānte ghṛtamājuhoti tannaiva devān na pitṛnupaiti| tathā dattaṃ nartane gāyane ca yāṃ cānṛte dakṣiṇāmāvṛṇoti||
When the offerings made at Shraddhas are exchanged by the performers with one another, they become Pishacha presents. Such offerings please neither the gods nor the departed Manes, Instead of reaching the other world, they wander about even here like a cow which has lost her calf wandering about within the fold.
— tr. M.N. Dutt (1891–96) (public domain)
MBh 9 90.33
उभौ हिनस्ति न भुनक्ति चैषा या चानृते दक्षिणा दीयते वै। आघातिनी गर्हितैषा पतन्ती तेषां प्रेतान् पातयेद् देवयानात्॥
ubhau hinasti na bhunakti caiṣā yā cānṛte dakṣiṇā dīyate vai| āghātinī garhitaiṣā patantī teṣāṃ pretān pātayed devayānāt||
As those libations of clarified butter that are poured upon the extinguished ashes of a sacrificial fire never reach either the gods or the departed Manes, similarly a gift that is inade to a dancer or a singer or a Dakshina presented to a lying or deceitful person, yields no merit.
— tr. M.N. Dutt (1891–96) (public domain)
MBh 9 90.34
ऋषीणां समये नित्यं ये चरन्ति युधिष्ठिर। निश्चिताः सर्वधर्मज्ञास्तान् देवा ब्राह्मणान् विदुः॥४९
ṛṣīṇāṃ samaye nityaṃ ye caranti yudhiṣṭhira| niścitāḥ sarvadharmajñāstān devā brāhmaṇān viduḥ||49
The present that is given to a lying or deceitful person destroys both the giver and the receiver without benefiting them in any way. Such a present is destructive and highly censurable. The Pitris of the person making it have to fall down form the celestial path.
— tr. M.N. Dutt (1891–96) (public domain)
MBh 9 90.35
स्वाध्यायनिष्ठा ऋषयो ज्ञाननिष्ठास्तथैव च। तपोनिष्ठाश्च बोद्धव्याः कर्मनिष्ठाश्च भारत॥
svādhyāyaniṣṭhā ṛṣayo jñānaniṣṭhāstathaiva ca| taponiṣṭhāśca boddhavyāḥ karmaniṣṭhāśca bhārata||
The gods know thein to he Brahmanas who always walk, O Yudhishthira, within the limits set up by the Rishis who know all duties, and who have a firm faith in their efficacy.
— tr. M.N. Dutt (1891–96) (public domain)
MBh 9 90.36
कव्यानि ज्ञाननिष्ठेभ्यः प्रतिष्ठाप्यानि भारत। तत्र ये ब्राह्मणान् केचिन्न निन्दन्ति हि ते नराः॥
kavyāni jñānaniṣṭhebhyaḥ pratiṣṭhāpyāni bhārata| tatra ye brāhmaṇān kecinna nindanti hi te narāḥ||
Those Brahmanas who are given to Vedic study, to knowledge, to penances, and to acts, O Bharata, should be known as Rishis.
— tr. M.N. Dutt (1891–96) (public domain)
MBh 9 90.37
ये तु निन्दन्ति जल्पेषु न ताञ्छ्राद्धेषु भोजयेत्। ब्राह्मणा निन्दिता राजन् हन्युस्त्रैपुरुषं कुलम्॥
ye tu nindanti jalpeṣu na tāñchrāddheṣu bhojayet| brāhmaṇā ninditā rājan hanyustraipuruṣaṃ kulam||
The offerings made at Shraddhas, should be given to those who are devoted to knowledge. Indeed, they are to be considered as men who never speak ill of the Brahmanas.
— tr. M.N. Dutt (1891–96) (public domain)
MBh 9 90.38
वैखानसानां वचनमृषीणां श्रूयते नृप। दूरादेव परीक्षेत ब्राह्मणान् वेदपारगान्॥
vaikhānasānāṃ vacanamṛṣīṇāṃ śrūyate nṛpa| dūrādeva parīkṣeta brāhmaṇān vedapāragān||
Those men should never be fed on occasions of Shraddhas who speak ill of Brahmanas in course of conversation in the midst of conclaves. If Brahmanas, O king, be vilified, they would destroy three generations of the calumniator.
— tr. M.N. Dutt (1891–96) (public domain)
MBh 9 90.39
प्रियो वा यदि वा द्वेष्यस्तेषां तु श्राद्धमावपेत्। यः सहस्रं सहस्राणां भोजयेदनृतान् नरः। एकस्तान्मन्त्रवित् प्रीतः सर्वानर्हति भारत॥
priyo vā yadi vā dveṣyasteṣāṃ tu śrāddhamāvapet| yaḥ sahasraṃ sahasrāṇāṃ bhojayedanṛtān naraḥ| ekastānmantravit prītaḥ sarvānarhati bhārata||
This is saying, O king, of the Vaikhanasa Rishis. Brahmanas knowing the Vedas should be examined from a distance. Whether one likes them or not, one should give to such Brahmanas the offerings made at Shraddhas. That man who feeds thousands upon thousands of unworthy Brahmanas acquires merit that is attainable by feeding even one Brahmana if the latter happens to be endued with a knowledge of the Vedas, o Bharata!
— tr. M.N. Dutt (1891–96) (public domain)