भीष्म उवाच।। bhīṣma uvāca ||

bhīṣma said
शृ णु राजन्नवहितो बहुकारणविस्तरम् । śṛṇu rājannavahito bahukāraṇavistaram |
जातरूपसमु त्पत्तिमनु भत
ू ं च यन्मया ।। १०।। jātarūpasamutpattimanubhūtaṃ ca yanmayā || 10||

Hear, oh king, attentively, [this] detailed-with-many-reasons [exposition

of mine] on the origin of gold as per what has been understood by me.
पिता मम महाते जाः शन्तनु र्निधनं गतः । pitā mama mahātejāḥ śantanurnidhanaṃ gataḥ |
तस्य दित्सु रहं श्राद्धं गङ्गाद्वारमु पागमम् ।। ११।। tasya ditsurahaṃ śrāddhaṃ gaṅgādvāramupāgamam || 11||

My father, the one of great lustre, śantanuḥ, had passed away. His
śrāddha rite I, desiring to do, approached the mouth of the gaṅgā.
तत्रागम्य पितु ः पु तर् श्राद्धकर्म समारभम् । tatrāgamya pituḥ putra śrāddhakarma samārabham |
माता मे जाह्नवी चै व साहाय्यमकरोत्तदा ।। १२।। mātā me jāhnavī caiva sāhāyyamakarottadā || 12||

Having arrived there, oh son, I commenced the śrāddha of my father.

My mother, jāhnavī (gaṅgā), too did help for that [purpose].
ततोऽग्रतस्तपःसिद्धानु पवे श्य बहनू ृ षीन् । tato'gratastapaḥsiddhānupaveśya bahūnṛṣīn |
तोयप्रदानात्प्रभृ ति कार्याण्यहमथारभम् ।। १३।। toyapradānātprabhṛti kāryāṇyahamathārabham || 13||

Thereafter, having seated those many ṛṣi-s, fulfilled in tapaḥ

(austerities/askesis), in front [of me], I commenced the [various ritual]
acts from the offering of water onwards.
तत्समाप्य यथोद्दिष्टं पूर्वकर्म समाहितः । tatsamāpya yathoddiṣṭaṃ pūrvakarma samāhitaḥ |
दातुं निर्वपणं सम्यग्यथावदहमारभम् ।। १४।। dātuṃ nirvapaṇaṃ samyagyathāvadahamārabham || 14||

Having completed, as per what is indicated/mentioned [in scripture], the

preliminary rites devotedly/collectedly, I correctly and properly
commenced the giving of the portion [allotted for my father; the पिण्ड/
piṇḍa].
ततस्तं दर्भविन्यासं भित्त्वा सु रुचिराङ्गदः ।
प्रलम्बाभरणो बाहुरुदतिष्ठद्विशां पते ।। १५।।
तमु त्थितमहं दृष्ट् वा परं विस्मयमागमम् ।
प्रतिग्रहीता साक्षान्मे पिते ति भरतर्षभ ।। १६।।
ततो मे पु नरे वासीत्सञ्ज्ञा सञ्चिन्त्य शास्त्रतः ।
नायं वे देषु विहितो विधिर्हस्त इति प्रभो ।। १७।।
पिण्डो दे यो नरे णे ह ततो मतिरभून्मम ।। १७।।
साक्षान्ने ह मनु ष्यस्य पितरोऽन्तर्हिताः क्वचित् ।
गृ ह्णन्ति विहितं त्वे वं पिण्डो दे यः कुशे ष्विति ।।
१८।।
tatastaṃ darbhavinyāsaṃ bhittvā surucirāṅgadaḥ |
pralambābharaṇo bāhurudatiṣṭhadviśāṃ pate || 15||
Then, piercing through that darbha-grass laid out/arranged [on the
ground], an arm, [decked with] a beautiful bracelet [and] hanging
ornaments, rose [from underground], oh lord of the people!
tamutthitamahaṃ dṛṣṭvā paraṃ vismayamāgamam |
pratigrahītā sākṣānme piteti bharatarṣabha || 16||
Beholding that rising [arm], I was filled with absolute wonder;
“To accept [the offering of piṇḍa], my father [himself has come] visibly!”,
thus [I thought], oh bull of the bharata-s
tato me punarevāsītsañjñā sañcintya śāstrataḥ |
nāyaṃ vedeṣu vihito vidhirhasta iti prabho || 17||
piṇḍo deyo nareṇeha tato matirabhūnmama || 17||
Then, to me, again occurred [another] thought, [when] contemplating
upon the śāstra (scripture); “this injunction of [offering directly into a]
hand is not enjoined in the veda-s”, thus [I thought], oh prabhu, [about]
the piṇḍa-offering by a man here; it arose in my intellect.
sākṣānneha manuṣyasya pitaro'ntarhitāḥ kvacit |
gṛhṇanti vihitaṃ tvevaṃ piṇḍo deyaḥ kuśeṣviti || 18||
Not directly [in their forms] here [in this world] do a human’s ancestors
accept [the offerings] but [what is] enjoined is the offering/placing of the
piṇḍa on the kuśa/darbha grass.
ततोऽहं तदनादृत्य पितु र्हस्तनिदर्शनम् ।
शास्त्रप्रमाणात्सूक्ष्मं तु विधिं पार्थिव सं स्मरन् ।।
१९।।
ततो दर्भेषु तत्सर्वमददं भरतर्षभ ।
शास्त्रमार्गानु सारे ण तद्विद्धि मनु जर्षभ ।। २०।।
ततः सोऽन्तर्हितो बाहुः पितु र्मम नराधिप ।
ततो मां दर्शयामासु ः स्वप्नान्ते पितरस्तदा ।। २१।।
प्रीयमाणास्तु मामूचुः प्रीताः स्म भरतर्षभ ।
विज्ञाने न तवाने न यन्न मु ह्यसि धर्मतः ।। २२।।
त्वया हि कुर्वता शास्त्रं प्रमाणमिह पार्थिव ।
आत्मा धर्मः श्रुतं वे दाः पितरश्च महर्षिभिः ।।
२३।।
साक्षात्पितामहो ब्रह्मा गु रवोऽथ प्रजापतिः ।
प्रमाणमु पनीता वै स्थितिश्च न विचालिता ।।
२४।।
तदिदं सम्यगारब्धं त्वयाद्य भरतर्षभ ।
tato'haṃ tadanādṛtya piturhastanidarśanam |
śāstrapramāṇātsūkṣmaṃ tu vidhiṃ pārthiva saṃsmaran || 19||
tato darbheṣu tatsarvamadadaṃ bharatarṣabha |
śāstramārgānusāreṇa tadviddhi manujarṣabha || 20||
Thereafter, oh king, I, disregarding that indication of my father’s hand
[and], recollecting the subtle point of the rule from the authority of
scripture, then, on the darbha-grass, placed the entire offering, oh bull
of the bharata-s; know that [act of mine] as one in accordance with the
path of scripture.
tataḥ so'ntarhito bāhuḥ piturmama narādhipa |
tato māṃ darśayāmāsuḥ svapnānte pitarastadā || 21||
Then, that arm of my father disappeared, oh lord of men! Thereafter, [at
night], in my dream, my ancestors showed themselves to me.
prīyamāṇāstu māmūcuḥ prītāḥ sma bharatarṣabha |
vijñānena tavānena yanna muhyasi dharmataḥ || 22||
tvayā hi kurvatā śāstraṃ pramāṇamiha pārthiva |
ātmā dharmaḥ śrutaṃ vedāḥ pitaraśca maharṣibhiḥ || 23||
sākṣātpitāmaho brahmā guravo'tha prajāpatiḥ |
pramāṇamupanītā vai sthitiśca na vicālitā || 24||
tadidaṃ samyagārabdhaṃ tvayādya bharatarṣabha |
Gladdened, they told me oh bull of the bharatas, “Gratified [with you] we
are by your intelligence, which has not erred with respect to dharma.
Acting with śāstra as authority, by you, oh king, the authority of yourself,
the dharma, the veda that is heard, the ancestors, the great sages, the
grandfather brahmā himself, the teachers and prajāpati-s has been
presented/shown [to the world]; it has been established, not departed
from. This has been correctly performed by you today, oh bull of the
bharata-s!