Shloka 15
कुण्डधारोपाख्यानम्
Kuṇḍadhāra-Upākhyāna: Dharma’s Superiority over Wealth and Desire
“सारांश यह कि उदारका ही अन्न भोजन करना चाहिये; कृपण, श्रोत्रिय एवं केवल सूदखोरका नहीं। जिसमें श्रद्धा नहीं है, एकमात्र वही देवताओंको हविष्य अर्पण करनेका अधिकार नहीं रखता है। उसीका अन्न नहीं खाना चाहिये। धर्मज्ञ पुरुष ऐसा ही मानते हैं ।।
sārāṁśaḥ—udārakasyaiva annaṁ bhojanaṁ kartavyam; kṛpaṇasya śrotriyasya kevala-sūdakhora-sya vā na. yasmin śraddhā nāsti sa eva devatābhyo haviṣyārpaṇe ’dhikāraṁ na labhate; tasya annaṁ na bhoktavyam—iti dharmajñāḥ puruṣā manyante. aśraddhā paramaṁ pāpaṁ śraddhā pāpa-pramocinī; jahāti pāpaṁ śraddhāvān sarpo jīrṇām iva tvacam.
Bhīṣma said: In sum, one should accept food only from a generous giver, not from a miser—even if he is a śrotriya learned in the Vedas—or from one who lives merely by usury. A person devoid of śraddhā has no true entitlement to offer havis to the gods; therefore his food should not be eaten. Such is the judgment of those who know dharma. For lack of faith is the greatest sin, while śraddhā releases one from sin: just as a snake casts off its worn-out skin, so does a man of faith cast away sin.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Food is ethically conditioned: one should accept and eat only what comes from generosity and sincere faith. Lack of śraddhā is treated as a grave moral fault, while śraddhā purifies—symbolized by the snake shedding its old skin.
In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma after the war. Here he gives a rule of conduct about accepting food and links ritual entitlement (offering haviṣya) to inner faith, emphasizing moral integrity over mere learning or social status.