Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 121
Nārāyaṇa-tejas: Kṛṣṇa’s Vrata, the Fire-Manifestation, and the Sages’ Inquiry (अनुशासन पर्व, अध्याय १२६)
इस प्रकार श्रीमह्या भारत अनुशासनपर्वके अन्तर्गत दानधर्मपर्वमें मैत्रेयकी भभिक्षाविषयक एक सौ इकक््कीसवाँ अध्याय पूरा हुआ
iti prakāraḥ śrīmahābhārate anuśāsana-parvaṇi antargate dāna-dharma-parvaṇi maitreya-bhikṣā-viṣayaka eka-śata-eka-viṃśatitamo 'dhyāyaḥ samāptaḥ
Thus ends the one hundred and twenty-first chapter on the theme of Maitreya’s discussion of alms (bhikṣā), within the Dāna-dharma section of the Anuśāsana Parva of the sacred Mahābhārata. This closing colophon signals the completion of a teaching unit that frames alms and giving as disciplined, dharma-guided conduct rather than mere transaction.
मैत्रेय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse is a colophon marking the end of a chapter focused on bhikṣā (alms) within the broader dharma of giving. Its ethical framing implies that alms and charity are to be understood as regulated by dharma—guided by right intention, propriety, and the moral responsibilities of giver and receiver.
Maitreya’s discourse on matters related to alms concludes, and the text formally closes the 121st chapter of the Dāna-dharma section within the Anuśāsana Parva. It is an editorial/narrative closure rather than a new event.