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 ||
ভীষ্মে ক’লে—ৰাজন! দ্বিজ ব্ৰাহ্মণে সাধুৰ পৰাও দান গ্ৰহণ কৰিব পাৰে, অসাধুৰ পৰাও; গুণৱানৰ পৰা গ্ৰহণ কৰাত দোষ অল্প, কিন্তু নিৰ্গুণৰ পৰা গ্ৰহণ কৰোঁতাজন পাপত নিমজ্জিত হয়।
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.