Dietary Rules & Purification — Dietary Rules, Purification (Śauca), and the Duties of the Householder and Forest-Dweller
विभवे सति नैवात्ति न ददाति जुहोति च तमाहुराखुं तस्यान्नं भुक्त्वा कृच्छ्रेण सुद्ध्यति
vibhave sati naivātti na dadāti juhoti ca tamāhurākhuṃ tasyānnaṃ bhuktvā kṛcchreṇa suddhyati
Même s’il en a les moyens, il ne se nourrit pas selon le dharma, ne fait pas l’aumône et n’offre pas d’oblations au sacrifice. Les sages appellent un tel homme « rat » ; manger sa nourriture ne purifie qu’avec peine (au prix d’une expiation ardue).
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Wealth is ethically meaningful only when circulated through the three dharmic channels—rightful use (bhoga within dharma), giving (dāna), and offering (yajña). Hoarding without these duties degrades the person and renders their food socially/ritually suspect.
This is ancillary dharma-nīti material rather than one of the five core marks (sarga, pratisarga, vaṃśa, manvantara, vaṃśānucarita). It functions as instructive conduct literature embedded in the Purāṇic narrative frame.
The “rat” symbolizes secretive accumulation and impurity—living off stores without sacrificial reciprocity. Food becomes a marker of moral economy: what is not shared/offered is portrayed as difficult to purify.