Shloka 47
तीर्थवंशोपदेशः
Tīrtha-vaṃśa Upadeśa: Instruction on the Fruits of Sacred Waters
अवेददब्रतचारित्रास्त्रिभिवरर्णर्युधिष्ठिर । मन्त्रवत्परिविष्यन्ते त्स्याधमों गवानृतम्
avedad-vrata-cāritrās tribhir varṇair yudhiṣṭhira | mantravat pariviṣyante teṣām adho gāvānṛtam ||
毗湿摩说道：“尤提施提罗啊，若三种再生族——婆罗门、刹帝利与吠舍——在施罗陀祭中，依咒语仪轨为那些不守吠陀誓戒、无有端行的婆罗门布施供食，则他们亦得如同对牛作伪誓之罪。”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Ritual acts like śrāddha require ethical discernment: feeding and honoring recipients who lack Vedic discipline and proper conduct, even with correct mantras, makes the giver share in serious sin—likened here to the grave offense of a false oath ‘upon a cow’.
In the Anuśāsana Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma. In this verse he warns about the consequences of serving śrāddha offerings to brāhmaṇas who do not follow Vedic vows and right conduct, emphasizing responsibility in choosing qualified recipients.