Shloka 21
Janamejaya’s Appeal for Pacification and Śaunaka’s Counsel on Humility (जनमेजय-शौनक संवादः)
ऋषीणां देवतानां च पितृणां च महात्मनाम् । श्रुतः पूर्व मया धर्मो महानतिथिपूजने,“मैंने ऋषियों, देवताओं, पितरों तथा महात्माओंके मुखसे पहले सुना है कि अतिथिकी पूजा करनेमें महान् धर्म है
ṛṣīṇāṃ devatānāṃ ca pitṝṇāṃ ca mahātmanām | śrutaḥ pūrvaṃ mayā dharmo mahān atithipūjane ||
Bhīṣma berkata: “Daripada bibir para resi, para dewa, dan para leluhur yang berhati luhur, sejak dahulu lagi aku telah mendengar ajaran ini: ada dharma yang luhur dan berat dalam memuliakan tetamu. Menyambut orang yang datang dengan penuh hormat—tanpa perhitungan dan tanpa berlengah—itulah kewajipan moral yang besar.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Honoring and serving a guest (atithi) is presented as a great dharma—an ethically weighty duty validated by revered authorities such as sages, gods, and ancestors.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction on righteous conduct, Bhīṣma cites traditional, authoritative sources to emphasize that atithi-pūjā (reverent hospitality) is a major component of dharma.