Shloka 66
पात्रलक्षण-परिक्षा (Pātra-Lakṣaṇa Parīkṣā) — Criteria for a Worthy Recipient
सर्वे ब्राह्मणमाविश्य सदान्नमुप भुठ्जते । सूर्य, चन्द्रमा, वायु, जल, पृथ्वी, आकाश और दिशा--इन सबके अधिष्ठाता देवता सदा ब्राह्मणके शरीरमें प्रवेश करके अन्न भोजन करते हैं
sarve brāhmaṇam āviśya sadā annam upabhuñjate | sūrya-candramā-vāyu-jala-pṛthvī-ākāśa-diśāṃ caiteṣām adhiṣṭhātṛ-devatāḥ sadā brāhmaṇasya śarīraṃ praviśya annam aśnanti ||
Bhishma disse: “Todas essas potências divinas—as que presidem o sol, a lua, o vento, a água, a terra, o espaço e as direções—entram continuamente no corpo de um brāhmaṇa e partilham do alimento. Por isso, honrar e sustentar um brāhmaṇa por meio da dádiva correta e da hospitalidade não é mera cortesia social, mas um ato de dharma que alcança a própria ordem cósmica, pois se entende que os deuses estão presentes nele como seu assento vivo.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Feeding and honoring a brāhmaṇa is portrayed as a dharmic act with cosmic reach: the presiding deities of fundamental elements and directions are said to dwell in him and thus receive the offering. The verse elevates hospitality and right giving (especially food) into a form of sustaining ṛta/dharma.
In Bhīṣma’s instruction on dharma (Anuśāsana Parva), he explains to the listener that deities associated with the sun, moon, wind, water, earth, space, and the directions enter the brāhmaṇa’s body and partake of food—supporting the broader exhortation to practice hospitality and charitable feeding.