Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 42
Pratyakṣa–Āgama–Ācāra: Doubt, Proof, and the Practice of Dharma (प्रत्यक्ष–आगम–आचारविचारः)
वायुभक्षो<म्बुभक्षो वा फलमूलाशनोडपि वा । यक्षेष्वैश्वर्यमाधाय मोदते5प्सरसां गणै:,जो वायु, जल, फल अथवा मूल खाकर रहता है, वह यक्षोंपर अपना प्रभुत्व स्थापित करके अप्सराओंके साथ आनन्द भोगता है
vāyubhakṣo 'mbubhakṣo vā phalamūlāśano 'pi vā | yakṣeṣv aiśvaryam ādhāya modate 'psarasāṃ gaṇaiḥ ||
摩诃提婆说道：“或以风为食，或以水为食，乃至以果与根为食；如此苦行者——既在夜叉众中建立主宰之权——便与诸天女（阿普萨罗）之群同享欢悦。”
श्रीमहेश्वर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that rigorous austerity and disciplined living (subsisting on air, water, fruits, or roots) are portrayed as generating powerful karmic merit, culminating in elevated status—here, sovereignty among Yakṣas—and access to celestial pleasures (Apsarases).
Śiva (Mahēśvara) is describing the fruits of ascetic practices: an ascetic who undertakes severe dietary restraint is said to attain dominion in the Yakṣa realm and then delight in the company of Apsarases, illustrating the reward-structure associated with tapas.