Shloka 17
Agastya-Māhātmya and Vasiṣṭha’s Protection of the Ādityas
Khalina Daityas; Sarayū Etiology
असत्कृतमवज्ञातं न भोक्तव्यं कदाचन,जो कलंकित मनुष्यका अन्न ग्रहण करता है, उसे रक्तका कुण्ड कहते हैं। जो चुगुलखोरके यहाँ भोजन करता है, उसका वह भोजन करना ब्रह्महत्याके समान माना गया है। असत्कार और अवहेलनापूर्वक मिले हुए भोजनको कभी नहीं ग्रहण करना चाहिये
asatkṛtam avajñātaṃ na bhoktavyaṃ kadācana | yaḥ kalaṅkita-manuṣyasyānnaṃ gṛhṇāti taṃ raktakuṇḍaṃ pracakṣate | yaś ca piśunasyānnaṃ bhuṅkte tasya tad-bhojanaṃ brahmahatyāsamaṃ matam | asatkārāvamānāpūrvaṃ labdhaṃ bhojyaṃ na kadācana ||
Bhishma said: “One should never partake of food that is offered with disrespect or contempt. A person who accepts the food of a morally tainted man is said to fall into a ‘pit of blood’. And whoever eats at the house of a slanderer—one who thrives on tale-bearing—such eating is regarded as equal to the sin of brahmin-slaying. Therefore, food obtained through insult and humiliation should never be accepted.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Food is not morally neutral: accepting or eating food offered with contempt, or from a person of corrupt character (especially a slanderer), is portrayed as spiritually harmful. One should protect one’s dharma by refusing such food, even if it is otherwise available.
In Anushasana Parva, Bhishma instructs Yudhishthira on dharma and right conduct. Here he gives a strict ethical rule about hospitality and acceptance of food, warning that eating from dishonourable or malicious sources brings grave demerit.