Shloka 44
Puṣkara-Śapatha Itihāsa (Agastya–Indra Dispute at the Tīrthas) | पुष्कर-शपथ-आख्यानम्
(भत्रिरुवाच न जातु काम: कामनामुपभोगेन शाम्यति । हविषा कृष्णवर्त्मेव भूय एवाभिवर्धते ।।
atrir uvāca—na jātu kāmaḥ kāmānām upabhogena śāmyati | haviṣā kṛṣṇavartmeva bhūya evābhivardhate || jagadagnir uvāca—pratigrahe saṃyamo vai tapo dhārayate dhruvam | tad dhanaṃ brāhmaṇasyeha lubhyamānasya visravet ||
Atri dit : Le désir ne s’apaise jamais par la jouissance des objets désirés ; tel un feu nourri de ghee, il ne fait que s’embraser davantage. Jagadagni dit : En s’abstenant d’accepter des dons, un brāhmaṇa conserve sûrement la maîtrise de soi et protège son ascèse (tapas). L’ascèse est la véritable richesse du brāhmaṇa ici-bas ; mais celui qui devient avide des richesses du monde voit s’écouler et se perdre ce trésor de tapas.
विश्वामित्र उवाच
Educational Q&A
Indulgence does not extinguish desire; it intensifies it, like fire growing when fed with ghee. Therefore, restraint—especially a brāhmaṇa’s restraint from accepting gifts and from greed—is presented as essential to preserve tapas, which is declared to be the brāhmaṇa’s true wealth.
Within a didactic sequence of teachings in Anuśāsana-parvan, sages’ voices are cited: Atri offers a moral analogy about desire, and Jagadagni follows with a rule of conduct for brāhmaṇas—warning that accepting gifts and craving worldly wealth undermines self-control and causes one’s accumulated austerity to dissipate.