Shloka 44
Ādi-parva Adhyāya 3 — Janamejaya’s Rite, Dhaumya’s Parīkṣā, and Uttanka’s Kuṇḍala Quest (सर्पसत्रप्रस्तावना–गुरुपरीक्षा–उत्तङ्कोपाख्यान)
तमुपाध्यायस्तथापि पीवानमेव दृष्टवा पुनरुवाच वत्सोपमन्यो अहं ते सर्व भैक्ष्यं गृह्नामि न चान्यच्चरसि पीवानसि भृशं केन वृत्ति कल्पयसीति,उपाध्यायने उसे फिर भी मोटा-ताजा ही देखकर पूछा--“बेटा उपमन्यु! मैं तुम्हारी सारी भिक्षा ले लेता हूँ और अब तुम दुबारा भिक्षा नहीं माँगते, फिर भी बहुत मोटे हो। आजकल कैसे खाना-पीना चलाते हो?”
tam upādhyāyas tathāpi pīvānam eva dṛṣṭvā punar uvāca—vatsopamanyo ahaṃ te sarva-bhaikṣyaṃ gṛhṇāmi na cānyac carasi; pīvān asi bhṛśaṃ; kena vṛttiṃ kalpayasīti.
Yet the teacher, seeing him still well-nourished, spoke again: “My child Upamanyu, I take all the alms you obtain, and you do not go out to beg a second time; still you are exceedingly stout. By what means, then, are you maintaining your livelihood?”
राम उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical scrutiny within the guru–śiṣya setting: a student must sustain himself only through permitted means and remain transparent. The teacher’s question probes whether the disciple is secretly violating discipline (e.g., consuming what should be surrendered), emphasizing integrity and self-restraint as part of dharma.
Upamanyu has been ordered to beg for alms and hand them over to his teacher. Despite surrendering all he collects and not begging again, he remains noticeably well-fed. The teacher, surprised, questions him about how he is managing to eat and maintain his body.