Shloka 346

Devanagari script

पूजयित्वा ततः पश्चाद्‌ गृहस्थो भोक्तुमहति । गृहस्थको चाहिये कि वह पहले देवताओं, ऋषियों, मनुष्यों (अतिथियों), पितरों और घरके देवताओंका पूजन करके पीछे अपने भोजन करे

Transliteration

pūjayitvā tataḥ paścād gṛhastho bhoktumarhati |

Translation

Vyāsa enseña que el jefe de hogar sólo se vuelve apto para comer después de haber rendido primero el debido honor y culto—comenzando por los dioses, luego los rishis, los huéspedes humanos, los antepasados (pitṛ) y las deidades del hogar. La enseñanza es que el goce privado debe seguir a las obligaciones sagradas y sociales: el alimento ha de recibirse como un acto disciplinado, fundado en la gratitud, la hospitalidad y la reverencia por los órdenes que sostienen la vida.

Word by Word

पूजयित्वाhaving worshipped

ततःthen/thereafter

पश्चात्afterwards

गृहस्थःthe householder

भोक्तुम्to eat

अर्हतिis fit/ought

Speaker

व्यास उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vyāsa

gṛhastha (householder)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

A householder should not treat food as mere personal consumption; one should first fulfill obligations of reverence and offering—honoring the divine, the sages, guests, ancestors, and household deities—so that eating becomes a dharmic act rooted in gratitude and responsibility.

What is happening in the narrative?

In Śānti Parva’s instruction on conduct, Vyāsa states a rule of household discipline: only after performing prior honors/offerings does the gṛhastha become fit to eat, emphasizing ordered duties before personal enjoyment.