Shloka 19
Agastya-Māhātmya and Vasiṣṭha’s Protection of the Ādityas
Khalina Daityas; Sarayū Etiology
गोघ्ने च ब्राह्मणघ्ने च सुरापे गुरुतल्पगे । भुक्त्वान्नं जायते विप्रो रक्षसां कुलवर्धन:
goghne ca brāhmaṇaghne ca surāpe gurutalpage | bhuktvānnaṁ jāyate vipro rakṣasāṁ kulavardhanaḥ ||
భీష్ముడు పలికెను—గోహంతకుని, బ్రాహ్మణహంతకుని, సురాపానకుని, గురుతల్పగామియైనవాని అన్నం భుజించిన బ్రాహ్మణుడు రాక్షసకులవర్ధకుడగును.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that accepting food is not morally neutral: a brāhmaṇa who eats the food of perpetrators of the gravest sins (cow-killing, brāhmaṇa-killing, drinking liquor, violating the guru’s bed) incurs severe ethical and spiritual taint, described as becoming a supporter of rākṣasa-lineage—i.e., aligned with demonic conduct.
In Anuśāsana Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma. Here he lists extreme transgressors and warns about the consequences for a brāhmaṇa who partakes of their food, emphasizing rules of association, purity, and responsibility in social exchange.