Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 70
Adhyāya 119: Vyāsa–Kīṭa-saṃvāda
Tapas-bala and karmic ascent across yoni
मधु मांसं च ये नित्यं वर्जयन्तीह धार्मिका: | जन्मप्रभृति मद्यं च सर्वे ते मुन॒य: स्मृता:
madhu māṁsaṁ ca ye nityaṁ varjayantīha dhārmikāḥ | janmaprabhṛti madyaṁ ca sarve te munayaḥ smṛtāḥ ||
ભીષ્મે કહ્યું—જે ધાર્મિકો આ લોકમાં સદા મધુ અને માંસનો ત્યાગ કરે છે, અને જન્મથી જ મદ્યથી પણ દૂર રહે છે—તે બધા મুনি ગણાય છે.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Steady abstinence—especially from intoxicants and certain foods—when practiced as a lifelong discipline is presented as a hallmark of dharmic self-restraint, meriting the recognition of a person as a “muni” (sage).
In Bhishma’s instruction on dharma (Anushasana Parva), he is describing ethical and ascetic standards; here he identifies lifelong abstainers from honey, alcohol, and meat as worthy of being counted among sages.