Shloka 51
Adhyāya 287 — Janaka’s Inquiry on Śreyas, Abhayadāna, and Asaṅga
Non-attachment
जिस देशमें सदा धर्मपरायण, यज्ञ कराने और पढ़ानेके कार्यमें संलग्न सनातनधर्मी श्रोत्रिय ब्राह्मण ही सबसे पहले भोजन पाते हों, उस राष्ट्रमें अवश्य निवास करे ।। स्वाहास्वधावषट्कारा यत्र सम्यगनुषछिता: । अजसंत्रं चैव वर्तन्ते वसेत् तत्राविचारयन्,जहाँ स्वाहा (अन्निहोत्र), स्वथा (श्राद्धकर्म) तथा वषट्कारका भलीभाँति अनुष्ठान होता हो और निरन्तर ये सभी कर्म किये जाते हों, वहाँ बिना विचारे ही निवास करना चाहिये
svāhāsvadhāvaṣaṭkārā yatra samyaganūṣṭhitāḥ | ajasraṁ caiva vartante vaset tatra avicārayan ||
Nārada said: One should choose to live in that land where the foremost share of food is given first to Veda-trained, orthodox Brāhmaṇas devoted to dharma—those engaged in conducting sacrifices and teaching. Where the rites marked by the invocations svāhā (offerings to the fire), svadhā (ancestral offerings), and the vaṣaṭ-call are properly performed and continue without interruption, one should reside there without hesitation.
नारद उवाच
Educational Q&A
Choose residence in a society where dharma is actively upheld through continuous, correctly performed Vedic and ancestral rites, and where learned, dharma-committed Brāhmaṇas are honored—symbolized by giving them the first share of food.
In Śānti Parva’s instruction on righteous living and social well-being, Nārada describes the marks of a dharmic land/kingdom and advises that one should live where sacrificial and śrāddha duties are properly maintained and the custodians of Vedic learning are duly respected.