Shloka 19
Puṣkara-Śapatha Itihāsa (Agastya–Indra Dispute at the Tīrthas) | पुष्कर-शपथ-आख्यानम्
भीष्म उवाच साधोर्य: प्रतिगृह्लीयात् तथैवासाधुतो द्विज: । गुणवत्यल्पदोष: स्यान्निर्गुणे तु निमज्जति
bhīṣma uvāca sādhoryaḥ pratigṛhṇīyāt tathaivāsādhuto dvijaḥ | guṇavaty alpadoṣaḥ syān nirguṇe tu nimajjati ||
قال بهيشما: «يا أيها الملك، إن البراهمي إذا قبل العطايا—سواء من رجلٍ فاضل أو من رجلٍ فاسد—فإنه لا يتحمّل إلا ذنباً يسيراً إذا أخذ من الفاضل. أما إذا أخذ ممن خلا من الخصال الحسنة، فإنه يغرق في الإثم.»
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The merit or fault in accepting charity depends strongly on the donor’s character: receiving from the virtuous carries at most a minor blemish, while receiving from the unvirtuous leads to moral downfall and sin.
In Anushasana Parva’s instruction on dharma, Bhishma is advising the king about standards of conduct—specifically, how a brahmin should judge the propriety of accepting gifts by considering the donor’s virtues or lack thereof.