Brāhmaṇa-vandana: Criteria for Veneration, Disciplined Speech, and Protective Kingship (अनुशासनपर्व, अध्याय ८)
सुसंस्कृतानि प्रयता: शुचीनि गुणवन्ति च | ददत्यन्नानि तृप्त्यर्थ ब्राह्मणेभ्यो युधिष्ठिर
susaṃskṛtāni prayatāḥ śucīni guṇavanti ca | dadaty annāni tṛptyarthaṃ brāhmaṇebhyo yudhiṣṭhira ||
Bhishma berkata: “Wahai Yudhishthira, dengan penuh perhatian dan pengendalian diri, mereka mempersembahkan makanan yang diolah dengan baik, suci, dan menyehatkan kepada para brahmana, demi memuaskan mereka.”
भीष्म उवाच
Bhīṣma emphasizes that charity is not merely giving, but giving rightly: food should be properly prepared, pure, and of good quality, offered with careful attention and the intention to genuinely satisfy worthy recipients (here, brāhmaṇas).
In the Anuśāsana Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma. In this verse he describes the proper manner of offering food—carefully prepared and pure—to brāhmaṇas as part of righteous conduct.