Shloka 10
Adhyāya 119: Vyāsa–Kīṭa-saṃvāda
Tapas-bala and karmic ascent across yoni
न भक्षयति यो मांसं न च हन्यान्न घातयेत् । तम्मित्रं सर्वभूतानां मनु: स्वायम्भुवोडब्रवीत्
na bhakṣayati yo māṁsaṁ na ca hanyān na ghātayet | taṁ mitraṁ sarvabhūtānāṁ manuḥ svāyambhuvo 'bravīt ||
Bhishma sprach: „Wer kein Fleisch isst, weder tötet noch töten lässt, der ist ein Freund aller Lebewesen — so erklärte Svāyambhuva Manu.“
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Ahimsa is defined broadly: true non-violence includes not eating meat, not killing oneself, and not commissioning or encouraging others to kill. Such a person is called the friend of all beings.
In the Anuśāsana Parva’s dharma-instruction setting, Bhīṣma cites the authority of Svāyambhuva Manu to support an ethical rule about abstaining from meat and from direct or indirect violence.