Shloka 20
अत्रेः तपोबलप्रकाशः तथा च्यवनस्य सोमाधिकारः
Atri’s Illumination by Tapas; Cyavana and Soma-Entitlement
यह प्रायश्रित्त करनेके बाद उसे सिद्धि प्राप्त होती है और वह भारी आपत्तिमें कभी नहीं पड़ता है ।। यस्तु शूद्रे: समश्रीयाद् ब्राह्मणो5प्येक भोजने । अशौचं विधिवत् तस्य शौचमत्र विधीयते
yaḥ prāyaścittaṃ kṛtvā tataḥ siddhiṃ prāpnoti sa ca gurv-āpadi kadācana na patati. yaḥ tu śūdreṣu samaśrayed brāhmaṇo 'py eka-bhojane, aśaucaṃ vidhivat tasya śaucam atra vidhīyate.
ନିର୍ଦ୍ଦିଷ୍ଟ ପ୍ରାୟଶ୍ଚିତ୍ତ କରିଲେ ସେ ଶୁଦ୍ଧି ଓ ସିଦ୍ଧି ପାଏ ଏବଂ ଭୟଙ୍କର ଆପଦରେ ପଡ଼େ ନାହିଁ। କିନ୍ତୁ ବ୍ରାହ୍ମଣ ହେଲେ ମଧ୍ୟ ଯଦି ଏକେ ଭୋଜନରେ ଶୂଦ୍ରମାନଙ୍କ ସହ ସମଭାବେ ଏକ ପଙ୍କ୍ତିରେ ଭୋଜନ କରେ, ତେବେ ତାହା ପାଇଁ ବିଧିମତ ଅଶୌଚ ଧରାଯାଏ; ଏହିହେତୁ ଏଠାରେ ତାହାର ଶୌଚ (ଶୁଦ୍ଧି-ବିଧାନ) ବିଧିତ ହେଉଛି।
भीष्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that faults leading to ritual impurity can be remedied through properly performed prāyaścitta, restoring śauca and preventing further downfall; it also underscores that certain forms of social mixing in a shared meal context are treated by dharma-text logic as generating aśauca for a brāhmaṇa, requiring prescribed purification.
In Anuśāsana Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma. Here he is laying out rules about impurity and its removal, specifying that when a brāhmaṇa incurs aśauca through particular conduct (such as equal association with śūdras in a shared meal), the text prescribes the appropriate cleansing rite.