Shloka 17
Agastya-Māhātmya and Vasiṣṭha’s Protection of the Ādityas
Khalina Daityas; Sarayū Etiology
असत्कृतमवज्ञातं न भोक्तव्यं कदाचन
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 ||
Dijo Bhishma: «Nunca debe comerse alimento ofrecido con falta de respeto o con desprecio. Quien acepta la comida de un hombre moralmente manchado cae, se dice, en un “pozo de sangre”. Y quien come en casa de un calumniador—que vive de llevar y traer palabras—comete, por ese comer, un pecado igual al de matar a un brāhmaṇa. Por ello, la comida obtenida mediante insulto y humillación no debe aceptarse jamás».
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.