Shloka 121
Puṣkara-Śapatha Itihāsa (Agastya–Indra Dispute at the Tīrthas) | पुष्कर-शपथ-आख्यानम्
द्वेष्यो भार्योपजीवी स्यादू दूरबन्धुश्न वैरवान् । अन्योन्यस्यातिथिकश्षास्तु बिसस्तैन्यं करोति यः:
bharadvāja uvāca | dveṣyo bhāryopajīvī syād dūrabandhuś ca vairavān | anyonyasyātithikaś cāstu bisastainyaṃ karoti yaḥ ||
婆罗堕阇说道：“盗取莲茎纤维（bisa）者，将成为众人所憎；以妻之所得为生；与亲族疏离；与众人为敌；并沦落到受辱之境，作为依附之客，辗转于此家彼户。”
भरद्वाज उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even seemingly small theft (here, stealing lotus-stalk fibres) corrodes one’s social and moral standing: it leads to being despised, estranged from kin, prone to enmity, and reduced to dependence on others—illustrating how adharma brings tangible social consequences.
In Bharadvāja’s instruction within the Anuśāsana Parva, he lists the karmic and social outcomes that follow from committing theft, using the concrete example of stealing “bisa” to show how wrongdoing manifests as loss of respect, family bonds, and self-reliance.