Dietary Rules & Purification — Dietary Rules, Purification (Śauca), and the Duties of the Householder and Forest-Dweller
भोज्यमन्नं पर्युषितं स्नेहाक्तां चिरसंभृतम् अस्नेहा व्रीहयः श्लक्ष्णा विकाराः पयसस्तथा
bhojyamannaṃ paryuṣitaṃ snehāktāṃ cirasaṃbhṛtam asnehā vrīhayaḥ ślakṣṇā vikārāḥ payasastathā
बासी अन्न, घी-तेल से लिपटा हुआ और बहुत समय तक रखा हुआ भोजन; तथा बिना चिकनाई के सूक्ष्म चावल के दाने, और दूध से बने विविध पदार्थ—ये भोज्य (उपयुक्त) कहे गए हैं।
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The teaching locates dharma in ordinary consumption: freshness, simplicity, and non-excess are treated as supports for bodily clarity and mental steadiness. By regulating food, one regulates impulses and maintains readiness for ritual, study, and restraint.
This is ācāra/dharma material rather than sarga/pratisarga/vaṃśa/manvantara. It exemplifies how Purāṇas incorporate prescriptive guidance alongside cosmology and genealogy.
Stale and over-kept rich foods can symbolize ‘carried-over’ impressions (saṃskāras) and indulgence; plain, well-prepared staples and milk derivatives symbolize sāttvika nourishment—supporting clarity (prasāda) and ritual fitness.