Manava Dharmashastra 2.51

2.51

samāhṛtyeti śabdo bahvībhya āharaṇaṃ darśayati | naikasyāḥ sakāśāt bahvo grahītavyāḥ |
taditi yasyānantaraṃ śabdasannidhiḥ vṛttyarthasya, na prākaraṇikasyopanayanāṅgasya | tasya hi gṛhyakāraiḥ “anupravacanīyaṃ śrapayediti” vihitaṃ, na bhojanam | ‘tiṣṭhe dahaḥśeṣamiti’ ca kṛtaprātarāśasya copanayanam | ato nopanayanāṅgaṃ bhaikṣabhojanam | yāvadarthaṃ yāvatā bhaikṣyeṇa tṛptyākhyaprayojananivṛttiḥ | na bahu bhikṣitavyam | amāyayā nivedya gurave, na kadannena saṃskṛtamannaṃ pracchādya kadannaṃ guroḥ prakāśayet, kadannaṃ kila eṣa na grahīṣyatītyanayā buddhyā | nivedanam ‘idaṃ prāptamiti’ prakaṭīkaraṇam | agṛhīte guruṇā anujñāto aśnīyāt | “kathaṃ punarnibedanamadṛṣṭasaṃskārārthameva na bhavati” | itihāsaprāmāṇyāt | tathā ca bhagavān vyāsaḥ | bitakūpākhyāne ‘guruṇā gṛhītamiti’ darśitavān | ‘anujñāto bhuñjīteti’ yatkacidgṛhyaṃ śrūyate | ācamya prāṅmukhaḥ | “ācamane prāṅmukhateyamānantaryāditi” kecit tadayuktam | ‘prāgudaṅmukha’ ityācamane diṅniyamo bhaviṣyati | tasmādbhojanenaiva sambandhaḥ | śuciḥ | cāṇḍālādidarśanamaśuci deśākramaṇaṣṭhīvanādi kṛtācamanasya bhojanakāle'nena niṣidhyate |

Having collected as much food as may be needed, and having offered it, without guile, to his Teacher, he should eat it, with his face to the east, after having sipped water and become pure.—(51)

Medhātithi’s commentary (manubhāṣya):
The term ‘having collected’ shows that the food should be obtained from several ladies, and a large quantity should not be obtained from a single lady.

‘It’—refers to that which has gone immediately before this, i.e., the food begged for ordinary eating, and not that which is done as part of the Initiation-rites, with which the context deals; specially as with regard to the latter all that the Gṛḥya-Sūtra prescribes is that the food should be ‘cooked,’ and nothing is said regarding ‘eating.’ Further, the injunction that ‘the boy should fast for the rest of the day’ shows that the boy undergoes the Initiatory rite after breakfast; so that the actual eating of the food cannot be part of that rite.

‘As much os way he needed’;—i.e., just as much food as may be necessary for the satisfaction of hunger; large quantities of food should not be begged.

‘Having offered it without guile to the Teacher;’—i.e., he should not show the teacher only the inferior articles of food, hiding with these the superior ones, with the view that the Teacher would not take any thing out of the inferior articles. The ‘offering’ consists of presenting it to him, saying ‘this is what I have obtained.’

What the teacher does not take, ‘he should eat,’ after having been permitted by the teacher to do so.

“Why should not the offering be regarded merely as an act producing in the food some transcendental effect (and not as a real offering meant to be accepted by the teacher)?”

That it is not so is proved by historical evidence: says the revered Vyāsa in the story of Hṛtakūpa, where it is distinctly stated that the teacher actually took what was offered.

That the boy should eat only after being permitted to do so, is laid down in several Gṛhyasūtras.

‘With his face to the east, after having sipped tenter.’—Some people have asserted that the facing of the east is meant to be connected with the sipping of water,—the two being in close proximity. But this is not right; as the rule regarding sipping—that it should be done with the face towards the east or north,—will come later on. Hence what is mentioned here is connected with the eating.

‘Pure.’—This means that after rinsing the mouth he should avoid, during meals, such tilings as looking at the Cāṇḍāla going to unclean places, spitting and so forth.—(51)