Shloka 43
अनुशासनपर्व अध्याय ९३ — तपस्, सदोपवास, विघसाशन, अतिथिप्रियता
Austerity, regulated fasting, residual-eating, and hospitality
तस्माम्समित्रं श्राद्धकृन्नाद्रियेत दद्याम्मित्रेभ्य: संग्रहार्थ धनानि । यन्मन्यते नैव शत्रुं न मित्र त॑ मध्यस्थं भोजयेद्धव्यकव्ये
tasmāt samitraṁ śrāddhakṛn nādriyeta dadyān mitrebhyaḥ saṅgrahārthaṁ dhanāni | yan manyate naiva śatruṁ na mitraṁ taṁ madhyasthaṁ bhojayeddhavyakavye ||
Disse Bhishma: Portanto, quem realiza o śrāddha não deve demonstrar consideração especial convidando um amigo. Se quiser manter os amigos satisfeitos, que lhes dê riqueza para preservar a boa vontade. Mas, na oferta de havya e kavya (ritos para deuses e ancestrais), deve alimentar apenas uma pessoa neutra—nem inimiga nem amiga—que considere imparcial.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Śrāddha should be protected from partiality and social bargaining: do not invite friends out of affection or obligation; instead, maintain friendships through appropriate gifts, and in the rite feed an impartial, neutral person so the ritual remains pure and unbiased.
In his instruction on dharma, Bhīṣma lays down a practical rule for ancestral rites: the śrāddha performer should avoid choosing ritual guests based on friendship or enmity, and should select a neutral person for the havya-kavya meal.