Shloka 14
कुण्डधारोपाख्यानम्
Kuṇḍadhāra-Upākhyāna: Dharma’s Superiority over Wealth and Desire
अश्रद्दधान एवैको देवानां नाते हवि: । तस्यैवान्नं न भोक्तव्यमिति धर्मविदो विदु:
aśraddadhāna evaiko devānāṃ nāte haviḥ | tasyaivānnaṃ na bhoktavyam iti dharmavido viduḥ ||
Dijo Bhīṣma: Si un hombre, solo y falto de śraddhā (fe reverente), ofrece una oblación (havis) que en verdad no está destinada a los dioses, entonces los sabios conocedores del dharma declaran que ni siquiera debe comerse el alimento que pertenece a tal persona. Esta enseñanza subraya que el rito sin śraddhā es éticamente vacío, y que aceptar su comida puede implicar participar de esa impureza de intención.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Ritual action (like offering haviḥ) is ethically valid only when grounded in śraddhā and proper intention toward the devas; when faith is absent, the act is considered defective, and even accepting the person’s food is discouraged because it signifies association with that flawed disposition.
In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma is instructing Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma and right conduct. Here he cites the view of dharma-knowers that offerings made without faith are not truly ‘for the gods,’ and therefore one should avoid partaking of the food of such a faithless performer.