Shloka 13
अन्नदान-प्रशंसा (Praise of the Gift of Food) | Annadāna-Praśaṃsā
आशिषं ये न देवेषु न च मर्त्येषु कुर्वते । अर्लन्तो नित्यसंतुष्टास्तथा लब्धोपजीविन:
āśiṣaṃ ye na deveṣu na ca martyeṣu kurvate | alpa-icchantō nitya-santuṣṭās tathā labdhopajīvinaḥ |
भीष्म उवाच—आशिषं ये न देवेषु न च मर्त्येषु कुर्वते, अल्पेच्छा नित्यसन्तुष्टास्तथा लब्धोपजीविनः। तान् पूज्यान् द्विजवरान् दूतैः परिमार्ग्य निमन्त्रय; भारत, ते दुःखिताः सन्तो विषधरभुजङ्गा इव घोराः स्युः, तस्मात् तेषां सत्कारेणात्मानं रक्ष। कुरुनन्दन, सेवकसामग्रीसम्पन्नं सुखदं गृहं निवेद्य तेषां नित्यं पूर्णं सत्कारं कुरु।
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
A ruler should actively seek out and honor truly renunciant, content Brahmins who ask nothing of gods or men and live on what comes. Their goodwill safeguards the king; neglecting or offending them can invite grave harm, so daily, complete hospitality is presented as a practical expression of dharma and self-protection.
In the Anuśāsana Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on royal conduct and dharma. Here he urges the king to locate such ascetic, low-desire Brahmins via messengers, invite them into a well-provisioned home, and honor them continually—warning that if they are made unhappy they may become dangerously wrathful, like venomous serpents.