Mahabharata 4.50.5 — Virata Parva, Adhyaya 50, Shloka 5
अध्याय ५०: उत्तरेण सह अर्जुनस्य रथप्रयाणे ध्वजचिह्नैः कौरवसेनानिर्देशः
Arjuna directs Uttara by identifying Kaurava commanders through banners
अधीत्य ब्राह्मणो वेदान् याजयेत यजेत वा | क्षत्रियो धनुराश्रित्य यजेच्चैव न याजयेत्
adhītya brāhmaṇo vedān yājayet yajeta vā | kṣatriyo dhanur āśritya yajec caiva na yājayet ||
Dijo Kṛpa: «Tras estudiar los Vedas, el brāhmaṇa debe celebrar sacrificios por sí mismo o bien oficiar y conducir los sacrificios de otros. El kṣatriya, apoyado en el arco—esto es, en el deber marcial y la protección—debe celebrar sacrificios para sí, pero no debe actuar como sacerdote conduciendo sacrificios ajenos, pues ese oficio pertenece a los brāhmaṇas.»
कृप उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse distinguishes duties by varṇa: a brāhmaṇa, grounded in Vedic study, may perform sacrifices and also officiate for others; a kṣatriya should perform sacrifices for himself but should not assume the priestly role of conducting rites for others.
Kṛpa states a normative rule about proper social and ritual conduct, emphasizing that priestly officiation (yājana) is the domain of brāhmaṇas, while kṣatriyas should adhere to their martial vocation symbolized by reliance on the bow.
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