Shloka 3
अहिंसयित्वा ब्रह्महत्याविधानम् / Brahmahatyā incurred without physical violence
युधिछिर उवाच श्रद्धया परया पूतो यः प्रयच्छेद् द्विजातये । हव्यं कव्यं तथा दानं को दोष: स्यात् पितामह
yudhiṣṭhira uvāca
śraddhayā parayā pūto yaḥ prayacched dvijātaye |
havyaṃ kavyaṃ tathā dānaṃ ko doṣaḥ syāt pitāmaha ||
Yudhiṣṭhira dit : «Grand-père, si un homme—purifié uniquement par la foi la plus haute—donne à un “deux-fois-né” (un brāhmaṇa) des offrandes destinées aux dieux (havya), des offrandes destinées aux ancêtres (kavya) et d’autres dons, quelle faute, s’il en est, s’attacherait encore à lui parce qu’il lui manque d’autres formes de pureté rituelle ?»
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a dharma-question: whether inner purity through supreme faith (śraddhā) is sufficient to sanctify acts of giving—especially sacred offerings to gods and ancestors—or whether lack of external/ritual purity still produces a moral or ritual fault.
In the Anuśāsana Parva’s instruction on dharma, Yudhiṣṭhira addresses Bhīṣma as ‘Grandfather’ and asks him to judge the status of a donor who gives havya, kavya, and other gifts to a brāhmaṇa relying primarily on faith, seeking clarification about any remaining दोष (defect) due to other impurities.