Mahabharata — Shanti Parva, Shloka 12
श्रीशक्रसंवादः — The Dialogue of Śrī
Lakṣmī) and Śakra (Indra
न भक्षयेत् तथा मांसममांसाशी भवत्यपि | दाननित्य: पवित्रश्न अस्वप्रश्न दिवाउस्वपन्
na bhakṣayet tathā māṁsam amāṁsāśī bhavaty api | dānanityaḥ pavitraśnī asvapraśnī divā na svapan tathā ||
Bhishma berkata: “Janganlah memakan daging; dengan itu saja seseorang menjadi pemakan non-daging. Orang yang setiap hari bersedekah dipandang suci. Orang yang tidak tidur pada siang hari dipahami sebagai senantiasa terjaga.”
भीष्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma teaches that dharmic character is shown through consistent disciplines: abstaining from meat (restraint and non-harm), giving charity daily (cultivating purity through generosity), and avoiding daytime sleep (alertness and regulated living).
In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma after the war. Here he offers concise behavioral markers by which a person’s ethical life—restraint, generosity, and disciplined wakefulness—can be recognized.