Shloka 71
तीर्थवंशोपदेशः
Tīrtha-vaṃśa Upadeśa: Instruction on the Fruits of Sacred Waters
पर्यश्षन्ति च ये दारानग्निभृत्यातिथींस्तथा । उत्सन्नपितृदेवेज्यास्ते वै निरयगामिन:
paryaśnanti ca ye dārān agnibhṛtyātithīṁs tathā | utsannapitṛdevejyās te vai nirayagāminaḥ ||
Dijo Bhishma: Quienes comen desatendiendo a sus dependientes—la esposa y la casa—sin antes ofrecer oblaciones al fuego sagrado y sin alimentar a sirvientes y huéspedes, y que han abandonado el culto debido a los antepasados y a los dioses, están, sin duda, atados al infierno. La enseñanza subraya que el consumo personal se vuelve pecado cuando ignora los deberes rituales y las obligaciones sociales de hospitalidad y cuidado.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
A householder must not eat selfishly: food should be preceded by offerings (to the sacred fire, gods, and ancestors) and by feeding those entitled to care—guests and dependents. Neglecting these duties turns eating into adharma and leads to grave demerit.
In the Anushasana Parva, Bhishma instructs Yudhishthira on dharma. Here he warns about the moral and ritual consequences for householders who abandon ancestral/divine worship and fail to feed guests and dependents before taking their own meal.