Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 40
सायंप्रातर्मनुष्पयाणामशन देवनिर्मितम् । नान्तरा भोजन दृष्टमुपवासविधिहिं स:
sāyaṃprātar manuṣyāṇām aśanaṃ devanirmitam | nāntarā bhojanaṃ dṛṣṭam upavāsavidhir hi saḥ |
毗湿摩说道：对人类而言，诸天只规定两次进食——清晨与傍晚。其间并无再食之法可见。能守此节制者，所得功德等同斋戒之果。并且在此德法之中，持戒的家主亦当护持并迎纳众人——宾客、仆从、亲族以及来求庇护者——使个人的自制成为承担社会责任的根基。
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Maintain disciplined eating—only morning and evening meals, avoiding food in between—so that restraint itself yields the merit associated with fasting; this personal discipline is aligned with the broader dharma of supporting and welcoming others (guests, dependents, kin, and refugees).
In Bhishma’s instruction on dharma (Anushasana Parva), he lays down a normative rule of conduct for householders: regulated meal-times as divinely ordained, and the ethical expectation that one’s life be oriented toward protection and hospitality for those connected to or dependent on the householder.