Shloka 33
Pānīya-dāna and Anna-dāna: The Primacy of Life-Sustaining Gifts (पानीयदान-प्रशंसा / अन्नदान-प्रशंसा)
आवाहाश्न विवाहाश्न यज्ञाश्चान्ञमृते तथा । निवर्तन्ते नरश्रेष्ठ ब्रह्म चात्र प्रलीयते,निमन्त्रण, विवाह और यज्ञ भी अन्नके बिना बंद हो जाते हैं। नरश्रेष्ठ! अन्न न हो तो वेदोंका ज्ञान भी भूल जाता है
āvāhāś ca vivāhāś ca yajñāś cānnamṛte tathā | nivartante naraśreṣṭha brahma cātra pralīyate ||
Nārada berkata: “Upacara menyambut jemputan, perkahwinan, dan korban suci (yajña) pun terhenti apabila tiada makanan. Wahai insan terbaik, apabila makanan tiada, bahkan ilmu suci—pengetahuan Veda (brahman)—di dunia ini pun pudar seolah-olah lenyap.”
नारद उवाच
Educational Q&A
Food (anna) is the practical foundation of dharma: without sustenance, social rites (welcome, marriage) and religious duties (yajña) cannot function, and even the transmission and remembrance of Vedic knowledge declines.
Nārada is instructing a listener addressed as “best of men,” emphasizing the societal and spiritual collapse that follows famine or lack of food—ritual life stops and sacred learning withers.