Shloka 45
Cyavana’s Water-Vow and the Ethics of Cohabitation (स्नेह-सम्वास-धर्मः)
भूयान् स्यात् क्षत्रियापुत्रो वैश्यापुत्रान्न संशय: । भूयस्तेनापि हर्तव्यं पितृवित्ताद् युधिष्ठिर
bhūyān syāt kṣatriyāputro vaiśyāputrān na saṁśayaḥ | bhūyas tenāpi hartavyaṁ pitṛvittād yudhiṣṭhira ||
ভীষ্মে ক’লে—ক্ষত্ৰিয়ৰ পুত্ৰ বৈশ্যৰ পুত্ৰতকৈ শ্ৰেষ্ঠ; ইয়াত সন্দেহ নাই। সেয়ে, হে যুধিষ্ঠিৰ, অৱশিষ্ট পিতৃধনৰ পৰা তাকো অধিক অংশ দিব লাগে।
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma frames inheritance and entitlement through the lens of varṇa-based hierarchy, asserting that a Kṣatriya son has a stronger claim than a Vaiśya son and therefore should receive a larger portion of ancestral property.
In his instruction to Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma and social/legal norms, Bhīṣma discusses how shares of paternal wealth should be apportioned, here emphasizing preferential allotment to a Kṣatriya son over a Vaiśya son.