Shloka 32
अहिंसयित्वा ब्रह्महत्याविधानम् / Brahmahatyā incurred without physical violence
युधिछिर उवाच कीदृशा: साधवो वितप्रा: केभ्यो दत्त महाफलम् | कीदृशानां च भोक्तव्यं तन्मे ब्रूहि पितामह
yudhiṣṭhira uvāca | kīdṛśāḥ sādhavo viprāḥ kebhyo dattaṃ mahāphalam | kīdṛśānāṃ ca bhoktavyaṃ tan me brūhi pitāmaha ||
Yudhiṣṭhira thưa: “Thưa ông nội, hạng bà-la-môn nào thật sự hiền thiện và đáng được xem là bậc ưu tú? Bố thí cho ai thì được quả báo lớn? Và nên mời, nên đãi ăn những bà-la-môn như thế nào? Xin người chỉ dạy cho con.”
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a dharma-inquiry: the ethical value of giving depends not only on the act of donation but also on discernment—recognizing genuine virtue and learning, and offering gifts and hospitality to worthy recipients so that charity becomes spiritually fruitful.
In the Anuśāsana Parva, Yudhiṣṭhira approaches the elder Bhīṣma (addressed as Pitāmaha) for guidance. Here he asks for criteria to identify truly virtuous brāhmaṇas, to know to whom gifts yield great results, and whom one should invite for feeding—setting up Bhīṣma’s ensuing instruction on dāna and proper recipients.