Shloka 28
जनक-राज्ञः मौण्ड्य-परिव्रज्या-विवादः
Janaka’s Renunciation Questioned; Discourse on Dāna and Detachment
अन्नाद् गृहस्था लोकेडस्मिन् भिक्षवस्तत एव च । अन्नात् प्राण: प्रभवति अन्नद: प्राणदो भवेत्,“इस जगतमें अन्नसे गृहस्थ और गृहस्थोंसे भिक्षुओंका निर्वाह होता है। अन्नसे प्राणशक्ति प्रकट होती है; अतः अन्नदाता प्राणदाता होता है
annād gṛhasthā loke ’smin bhikṣavas tata eva ca | annāt prāṇaḥ prabhavati annadaḥ prāṇado bhavet ||
In this world, householders live by food, and mendicants too depend upon those very householders. From food arises vital strength (life-breath, prāṇa); therefore, the giver of food becomes, in effect, a giver of life.
अजुन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Food is the basis of life and social order; since life-breath depends on nourishment, giving food is ethically equivalent to giving life. The verse underscores anna-dāna as a primary form of dharma and a sustaining support for both household society and renunciant practice.
Within the Shānti Parva’s instruction on righteous conduct and social duties, the speaker emphasizes the interdependence of āśramas: householders produce and provide food, and mendicants rely on that provision. The statement frames generosity—especially feeding others—as a stabilizing force for peace and moral order.