Shloka 8
Ātma-saṃyama-dharma: One-pointedness of Mind and Senses (शुक–व्यास संवादः)
विधूमे सन्नमुसले वानप्रस्थप्रतिश्रये । काले प्राप्ते चरन् भैक्ष्यं कल्पते ब्रह्म भूयसे
vidhūme sannamusale vānaprasthapratiśraye | kāle prāpte caran bhaikṣyaṃ kalpate brahma bhūyase ||
Vyāsa said: When the proper time has come, the renunciant who lives by alms should go for begging to the dwelling of a forest-dweller only when the kitchen is without smoke and the sound of the pestle has ceased. Living in this disciplined way, the mendicant becomes fit to attain the state of Brahman.
व्यास उवाच
Educational Q&A
A renunciant should beg in a way that minimizes burden and disturbance to householders/forest-dwellers—approaching only after cooking and pounding are finished—so that his livelihood remains pure, restrained, and aligned with the pursuit of Brahman.
Vyāsa lays down a practical rule of conduct for a mendicant: the sannyāsin should time his alms-round to a vānaprastha’s dwelling when there is no kitchen smoke and no sound of the pestle, indicating that the host’s work is done and the request will not cause disruption.