Shloka 93
Chapter 2: Sudarśana Upākhyāna — Atithi-Dharma and the Conquest of Mṛtyu
Gṛhastha-Vrata
पात्र त्वतिथिमासाद्य शीलादढूयं यो न पूजयेत् । स दत्त्वा दुष्कृतं तस्मै पुण्यमादाय गच्छति
pātraṃ tv atithim āsādya śīlādhyūyaṃ yo na pūjayet | sa dattvā duṣkṛtaṃ tasmai puṇyam ādāya gacchati ||
ಯೋಗ್ಯನೂ ಶೀಲವಂತನೂ ಆದ ಅತಿಥಿ ಬಂದಾಗ ಗೃಹಸ್ಥನು ಯಥೋಚಿತವಾಗಿ ಪೂಜಿಸದೆ ಇದ್ದರೆ, ಆ ಅತಿಥಿ ತನ್ನ ಪಾಪವನ್ನು ಅವನಿಗೆ ನೀಡಿ, ಅವನ ಪುಣ್ಯವನ್ನು ತೆಗೆದುಕೊಂಡು ಹೋಗುತ್ತಾನೆ.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
A worthy guest must be honored appropriately; failing to do so causes the householder to lose merit (puṇya) and incur demerit (duṣkṛta). Hospitality is presented as a direct moral and karmic obligation within gṛhastha-dharma.
In Bhishma’s instruction on dharma, he warns about the consequences of neglecting a deserving atithi. The verse frames the guest as a moral ‘carrier’ who, when dishonored, departs symbolically transferring the host’s merit away and leaving sin behind.