Shloka 131
Brāhmaṇa-mahattva and Atithi-Dharma
Brahmagītā: Praise of Brāhmaṇas and norms of honor
मांसं च रुधिरं चास्य मज्जा मेदश्न मे हितम् | परितोषकरो होष मम मास्याग्रतो भव
māṁsaṁ ca rudhiraṁ cāsya majjā medaś ca me hitam | paritoṣakaro hoṣa mama māsyāgrato bhava
Der Habicht sprach: „Für mich sind sein Fleisch und sein Blut — sein Mark und sein Fett — heilsam. O du, der du mich zufriedenstellen willst, tritt mit Fleisch vor mich hin.“
श्येन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse foregrounds a dharmic conflict: compassion toward the vulnerable versus the predator’s legitimate need to live by its nature. It invites reflection on how ethical duties can collide—especially when protecting one life seems to deny another’s rightful sustenance.
The hawk speaks, insisting that the prey’s flesh, blood, marrow, and fat are its proper nourishment. It demands that the other party satisfy it by providing meat, intensifying the debate over whether and how one may intervene in the natural order without committing injustice.