Shloka 26
कुमाराभिषेकप्रश्नः — Inquiry into Kumāra (Skanda) Investiture at Sarasvatī
क्षुतं कीटावपन्नं च यच्चोच्छिष्टाचितं भवेत् । सकेशमवधूतं च रुदितोपहतं च यत्
kṣutaṃ kīṭāvapannaṃ ca yac cocchiṣṭācitaṃ bhavet | sakeśam avadhūtaṃ ca ruditopahataṃ ca yat |
毗湿摩波耶那说：“凡食物被喷嚏所污、为虫所侵、由他人残食堆聚而成、夹杂毛发、被摇动而沾染污秽，或被泪水所坏者——皆当视为不净之食。”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse lists concrete signs of defilement in food—contamination by bodily emissions (sneeze, tears), insects, leftovers, hair, and rough handling—implying that ethical self-discipline includes attentiveness to purity and propriety in daily acts like eating.
Vaiśampāyana is describing standards of acceptable versus unacceptable food, enumerating types of food considered polluted and therefore to be avoided, as part of a broader dharma-oriented instruction within the Shalya Parva context.