Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 18
Āloka-dāna (Dīpa-dāna), Sumanas–Dhūpa–Dīpa Phala: Manu–Suvarṇa and Śukra–Bali Exempla
अमृतं मनसः प्रीतिं सद्यस्तृप्तिं ददाति च । मनो ग्लपयते तीव्र विष॑ गन्धेन सर्वश:
amṛtaṃ manasaḥ prītiṃ sadyas tṛptiṃ dadāti ca | mano glāpayate tīvraṃ viṣa-gandhena sarvaśaḥ ||
Wika ni Śukra: “Ang amṛta (nektar) ay nagdudulot ng galak sa isipan at nagbibigay ng agarang kasiyahan. Ang lason naman, sa kabaligtaran—sa mismong amoy nito—ay nagpapalubog sa isip sa matalim at ganap na dalamhati.”
शुक्र उवाच
Educational Q&A
One should cultivate what is ‘amṛta-like’—that which naturally brings clarity, joy, and wholesome satisfaction to the mind—and avoid what is ‘viṣa-like,’ which even by proximity (symbolized by smell) produces inner agitation and dejection. The verse frames ethical discernment through the mind’s immediate moral-psychological response.
In Anuśāsana Parva’s didactic setting, Śukra speaks in an instructive tone, using a vivid contrast—nectar versus poison—to teach how to recognize beneficial versus harmful influences and choices by their effects on the mind.