Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 15
Adhyāya 119: Vyāsa–Kīṭa-saṃvāda
Tapas-bala and karmic ascent across yoni
सदा यजति सत्रेण सदा दान प्रयच्छति । सदा तपस्वी भवति मधुमांसविवर्जनात्,मद्य और मांसका परित्याग करनेसे मनुष्य सदा यज्ञ करनेवाला, सदा दान देनेवाला और सदा तप करनेवाला होता है
sadā yajati satreṇa sadā dānaṃ prayacchati | sadā tapasvī bhavati madhumāṃsa-vivarjanāt ||
Bhishma said: By abstaining from intoxicating drink and from meat, a person becomes, as it were, continually engaged in sacred sacrifice, continually giving in charity, and continually practicing austerity.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Renouncing intoxicants and meat is presented as a continuous form of dharmic practice: it sustains purity and self-mastery, and is credited with the merit of constant sacrifice, constant charity, and constant austerity.
In Bhishma’s instruction on dharma (Anushasana Parva), he explains to the listener that certain forms of restraint—specifically avoiding liquor and meat—are not merely negative prohibitions but positive, merit-producing disciplines equivalent to ongoing religious acts.