Shloka 14
अनुशासनपर्व अध्याय ९३ — तपस्, सदोपवास, विघसाशन, अतिथिप्रियता
Austerity, regulated fasting, residual-eating, and hospitality
नष्ट देवलके दत्तमप्रतिष्ठं च वार्धुषे । यत्तु वाणिजके दत्तं नेह नामुत्र तद् भवेत्
Bhīṣma uvāca: naṣṭaṁ devalake dattam apratiṣṭhaṁ ca vārdhuṣe | yat tu vāṇijake dattaṁ neha nāmutra tad bhavet ||
Bhishma berkata: “Pemberian (terutama persembahan śrāddha) kepada orang yang hidup dari pelayanan di kuil menjadi sia-sia. Yang diberikan kepada lintah darat tidak menghasilkan buah yang mantap. Dan apa pun yang diberikan kepada pedagang tidak berbuah, baik di dunia ini maupun di dunia sana.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhishma teaches that the spiritual efficacy of śrāddha-gifts depends on the recipient’s mode of livelihood and moral standing; offerings given to certain professionalized or ethically suspect livelihoods are said to become fruitless—yielding no benefit either here or hereafter.
In Anuśāsana Parva, Bhishma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma, including norms of śrāddha and dāna. This verse is part of a prescriptive passage specifying recipients to avoid, asserting that gifts to a temple-service professional, a moneylender, or a merchant do not produce the intended merit.