Shanti Parva Adhyaya 336 Shloka 20 - Mahabharata | German | Vedapath

Vyasa

Shloka 20

एकान्तिधर्म-प्रश्नः (Inquiry into Ekāntin Dharma) / The Origin and Practice of Single-Pointed Nārāyaṇa-Centered Discipline

Devanagari script

पितृशेषेण विप्रांश्न संविभज्यश्रितांश्व॒ सः । शेषान्नभुक्‌ सत्यपर: सर्वभूतेष्वहिंसक:

Transliteration

pitṛ-śeṣeṇa viprān saṁvibhajya āśritāṁś ca saḥ | śeṣānna-bhuk satya-paraḥ sarva-bhūteṣv ahiṁsakaḥ ||

Translation

Bhishma sprach: Nachdem er aus dem Rest der Ahnenopfer zuerst den Brahmanen und den von ihm Abhängigen ihren Anteil zugeteilt hatte, aß er nur noch die Speise, die danach übrig blieb. Er war der Wahrheit ergeben und übte Gewaltlosigkeit gegenüber allen Wesen—ein Vorbild disziplinierter Hausstandspflicht, in der der eigene Genuss zuletzt kommt, nach der Ehrung von Göttern, Ahnen und Gästen.

Word by Word

पितृशेषेणby/with the remainder (left) for the Pitṛs

विप्रान्Brahmins

संविभज्यhaving distributed / after apportioning

आश्रितान्dependents; those who have taken refuge

चand

सःhe

शेषान्नभुक्one who eats only the remaining food

सत्यपरःdevoted to truth

सर्वभूतेषुtowards/in regard to all beings

अहिंसकःnon-violent; not harming

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

Bhishma

Pitṛs (ancestors)

Brahmins (vipras)

Dependents/guests (āśritas)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

One should prioritize dharmic distribution—honoring ancestors and supporting Brahmins and dependents—before personal consumption, while remaining steadfast in truth and non-violence toward all beings.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bhishma describes the conduct of a righteous person who, after completing ritual obligations, distributes the remaining food to Brahmins and dependents and only then eats what is left, embodying satya (truth) and ahiṁsā (non-harm).