Verse 3.192

Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration and English translation by Ganganath Jha:

अक्रोधनाः शौचपराः सततं ब्रह्मचारिणः ।
न्यस्तशस्त्रा महाभागाः पितरः पूर्वदेवताः ॥ १९२ ॥

akrodhanāḥ śaucaparāḥ satataṃ brahmacāriṇaḥ |
nyastaśastrā mahābhāgāḥ pitaraḥ pūrvadevatāḥ || 192 ||

The Pitṛs are the foremost gods, free from anger, ever intent on purity, chaste, rid of all means of offence, and supremely blessed.—(192)

 

Medhātithi’s commentary (manubhāṣya):

‘Free from anger’—without wrath.

‘Intent on purity,’—‘purity’ standing either for external purity obtained by means of clay and water, or internal purity obtained by means of expiatory rites.

‘Ever’—qualifies ‘purity.’ Hence the meaning is that, whenever one happens to spit or do any such unclean act, one should rinse one’s mouth immediately.

‘Chaste’—avoiding all intercourse with women.

‘Rid of all means of offence—those by whom the means of offence have been laid aside. ‘Offence’ stands for roughness and strife of all kinds.

‘Supremely blessed;’—‘blessedness’ consists in the presence of such qualities as nobility, prosperity, and so forth.

Since it is in all this form that the Pitṛs enter into the body of the Brāhmaṇas,—therefore, the Brāhmaṇas also should assume these same forms;—this is what is enjoined by means of the commendatory description contained in the verse.

‘Foremost gods.’—That in another time-cycle the ancestors were gods, is an eulogium bestowed on the ancestors. They are called ‘foremost’ because they are worshipped before the gods.—(192)

 

Explanatory notes by Ganganath Jha

This verse is quoted in Hemādri (Śrāddha, pp. 61 and 1005), which adds the following notes ‘Akrodhanāḥ,’ free from anger,—‘śaucaparāḥ’ is qualified by ‘satatam’, ‘always pure,’—hence the invited should sip water immediatly on sneezing or spitting,—‘brahmacāriṇaḥ,’ avoiding intercourse with women,—‘nyastaśastrāḥ’, who have renounced cruelty,—‘mahābhāgāḥ’, endowed with mercy, generosity and other such qualities; ‘since Fathers are such the invited who take their form, should also be so.’

 

Comparative notes by various authors

Viṣṇu (9.14,17, 24).—‘He should offer metallic vessels;—specially those of silver;—whatever is offered with a vessel—howsoever small—made of gold or silver or rhinoceros-horn or Udumbara wood,—becomes imperishable.’

Yājñavalkya (1. 237).—‘The remnant of the oblations one should carefully offer into vessels, such as may be available; but specially in those of silver.’