Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 72
Adhyāya 119: Vyāsa–Kīṭa-saṃvāda
Tapas-bala and karmic ascent across yoni
पठेद् वा य इदं राजन् शृणुयाद् वाप्यभीक्षणश: । अमांसभक्षणविर्धि पवित्रमृषिपूजितम्
paṭhed vā ya idaṃ rājan śṛṇuyād vāpy abhīkṣṇaśaḥ | amāṃsabhakṣaṇavṛttiṃ pavitram ṛṣipūjitam ||
Bhīṣma said: “O King, whoever reads this account—or repeatedly listens to it—concerning the pure, sage-honoured discipline of abstaining from eating meat, becomes freed from all sins, is honoured with the full range of desired enjoyments, and attains a distinguished standing among his own kinsmen; of this there is no doubt.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse praises abstention from eating meat as a purifying, ethically elevated discipline endorsed by sages, and it emphasizes the dharmic power of repeatedly hearing or reciting such teachings to remove sin and cultivate honour and well-being.
In Anuśāsana Parva, Bhīṣma instructs King Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma. Here he concludes or reinforces a section on giving up meat-eating, stating that anyone who reads or repeatedly hears this sage-approved teaching gains purification, desired benefits, and social esteem among one’s kin.