Verse 5.36

Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration and English translation by Ganganath Jha:

असंस्कृतान् पशून् मन्त्रैर्नाद्याद् विप्रः कदा चन ।
मन्त्रैस्तु संस्कृतानद्यात्शाश्वतं विधिमास्थितः ॥ ३६ ॥

asaṃskṛtān paśūn mantrairnādyād vipraḥ kadā cana |
mantraistu saṃskṛtānadyātśāśvataṃ vidhimāsthitaḥ || 36 ||

The Brāhmaṇa shall never eat animals that have not been consecrated with sacred texts; but those that have been consecrated with sacred texts, he shall eat, taking, his stand upon the eternal law.—(36)

 

Medhātithi’s commentary (manubhāṣya):

In connection with animals-sacrifice, ‘sprinkling with water’ and other consecrations have been laid down as to be done with sacred texts; and one shall eat the meat of those animals for whom all these have been performed, and which (thus) are the ‘remnants of sacrifices’ prescribed in the Vedas. But in the case of the and other sacrifices that are performed solely on the strength of usage (and for which there is no injunction in the Veda),—even though the meat would he the ‘remnant of sacrifice’, yet, since there would be no ‘consecration with sacred texts’, it would be ‘unfit for eating’.

‘Eternal’—Vedic.

‘Taking his stand’—dependent.—(36)

 

Explanatory notes by Ganganath Jha

This verse is quoted in Hemādri (Śrāddha, p. 580).

 

Comparative notes by various authors

Viṣṇu (51.59).—(Same as Manu.)