Verse 6.16

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

न फालकृष्टमश्नीयादुत्सृष्टमपि केन चित् ।
न ग्रामजातान्यार्तोऽपि मूलाणि च फलानि च ॥ १६ ॥

na phālakṛṣṭamaśnīyādutsṛṣṭamapi kena cit |
na grāmajātānyārto'pi mūlāṇi ca phalāni ca || 16 ||

He shall not eat anything produced by ploughing, even though it mat have been thrown away by some one; nor such flowers and fruits as are grown in villages, even though he in be in distress.—(16)

 

Explanatory notes by Ganganath Jha

Of forest-grown things also, those ‘produced by ploughing’ are forbidden; while things grown in villages, even though not ‘produced by ploughing’, have been already forbidden by verse 3 above; the present fresh prohibition is meant for flowers and fruits, and this prohibition applies to the use of village-grown flowers and fruits in the worshipping of gods &c.

‘Even though he be in distress’.—That is, even though nothing else be available, and the worshipping of gods be absolutely necessary,—these things shall not be used even as substitutes.

The term ‘api’, ‘even’, should be construed away from where it occurs; the sense being—‘even f lowers shall not be used, what to say of grains?’—(16).

 

Comparative notes by various authors

Vaśiṣṭha (9.4),—‘He shall gather wild-growing roots and fruits only.’

Yājñavalkya (3.46).—‘Wearing beard and braided hair, self-controlled, he shall support, with grain obtained without ploughing, the fires, the Pitṛs, gods, guests and dependants.’

Laugākṣi (Aparārka, p. 942).—‘Vrīhi, barley, wheat, sesamum, mustard, sugar-cane and Priyaṅgu,—these are the village-grown substances.’