Shloka 21
Dāna-Śreṣṭhatā: On the Superiority of Giving
Maitreya–Vyāsa Exemplum
भृत्यातिथिजनश्चवापि गृहे पर्यशितो मया । मात्सर्यात् स्वादुकामेन नृशंसेन बुभुक्षता
bhṛtyātithijanaś cāpi gṛhe paryaśito mayā | mātsaryāt svādukāmena nṛśaṃsena bubhukṣatā ||
मी इतका निर्दय होतो की घरात नोकर, अतिथी आणि आश्रितजन असतानाही मी पोटभर जेवत असे. मत्सराने पेटलेला, केवळ चवीच्या लोभाने आणि क्रूर भुकेच्या अधीन होऊन, माझ्या घरी आलेल्यांना न खाऊ घालता मीच आधी भोजन करीत असे.
कीट उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse condemns selfish consumption and emphasizes atithi-dharma: one should feed guests, dependents, and those under one’s care before satisfying one’s own appetite. Envy and mere taste-craving are shown as ethical failings that lead to cruelty.
Kīṭa speaks in confession, admitting past wrongdoing: he would eat at home without offering food to guests and dependents, motivated by jealousy and the desire for tasty food, revealing moral decline and remorse.