Shloka 16
तीर्थवंशोपदेशः
Tīrtha-vaṃśa Upadeśa: Instruction on the Fruits of Sacred Waters
राजन! जो गाते-बजाते, नाचते, खेल-कूदकर तमाशा दिखाते, व्यर्थकी बातें बनाते और पहलवानी करते हैं, वे भी निमन्त्रण पानेके अधिकारी नहीं हैं ।।
rājan! hotāro vṛṣalānāṃ ca vṛṣalādhyāpakās tathā | tathā vṛṣalaśiṣyāś ca rājan nārhanti ketanam ||
Bhīṣma dijo: «Oh Rey, quienes cantan y tañen, bailan, muestran espectáculos con juegos y destrezas, urden palabras vanas y practican la lucha—tampoco son dignos de invitación. Y además, oh señor de los hombres, quienes ofician sacrificios para los Śūdra, quienes los instruyen, o quienes se hacen sus discípulos para aprender de ellos o servirles, tampoco deben ser invitados al śrāddha.»
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse lays down a rule of ritual eligibility: for formal invitations connected with rites (especially śrāddha-type hospitality), one should avoid inviting persons whose ritual roles and educational ties are considered improper within the text’s dharma framework—specifically, those who officiate for, teach, or study under those labeled vṛṣala.
In Anuśāsana Parva, Bhīṣma instructs King Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma and proper conduct. Here he is enumerating categories of people regarded as unfit to be invited to certain ceremonial meals/rites, continuing a broader discussion on rules of hospitality and ritual purity.