Shloka 33
प्रजाविसर्ग-तत्त्वनिर्णयः | Cosmogony of Elemental Emergence
Bharadvāja–Bhṛgu Dialogue
पशुयज्ञै: कथं हिंसैमादृशो यट्टमरहति । अन्तवद्धिरिव प्राज्ञ: क्षेत्रयज्जै: पिशाचवत्,मेरे-जैसा विद्वान् पुरुष नश्वर फल देनेवाले हिंसायुक्त पशुयज्ञ और पिशाचोंके समान अपने शरीरके ही रक्त-मांसद्वारा किये जानेवाले तामस यज्ञोंका अनुष्ठान कैसे कर सकता है?
paśuyajñaiḥ kathaṃ hiṃsaiḥ mādṛśo yat tam arhati | antavaddhir iva prājñaḥ kṣetrayajñaiḥ piśācavat ||
पशुयज्ञैः कथं हिंसैर्मादृशो यष्टुमर्हति। अन्तवद्भिरिव प्राज्ञः क्षेत्रयज्ञैः पिशाचवत्॥
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhishma rejects rituals grounded in violence or dark, self-harming offerings, arguing that a truly wise person should not pursue sacrifices that produce only transient results and violate ethical restraint (especially ahiṃsā).
In his dharma-instruction during the Shanti Parva, Bhishma explains to his listener that certain sacrificial practices—animal-killing rites and tāmasika, ghoulish ‘body-offering’ rituals—are unfit for a discerning person, thereby steering the discussion toward purer, non-violent religious conduct.