Shloka 14
Cyavana’s Water-Vow and the Ethics of Cohabitation (स्नेह-सम्वास-धर्मः)
वर्णे तृतीये जातस्तु वैश्यायां ब्राह्णादपि । द्विरंशस्तेन हर्तव्यो ब्राह्मणस्वाद् युधिष्ठिर
varṇe tṛtīye jātastu vaiśyāyāṃ brāhmaṇād api | dvir-aṃśas tena hartavyo brāhmaṇasvād yudhiṣṭhira ||
ভীষ্ম বললেন—হে যুধিষ্ঠির! তৃতীয় বর্ণের নারী—বৈশ্যা—তার গর্ভে ব্রাহ্মণ পিতার যে পুত্র জন্মায়, তাকে ব্রাহ্মণের সম্পত্তি থেকে দ্বিগুণ অংশ দিতে হবে।
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse states a dharma-based inheritance rule: a son born from a Brāhmaṇa father and a Vaiśyā mother is entitled to a double portion from the Brāhmaṇa’s estate, indicating graded shares tied to varṇa-based norms discussed by Bhīṣma.
In Anuśāsana Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma and social/legal duties. Here he answers a question about entitlement to property and the appropriate share for a son born of a mixed-varṇa union (Brāhmaṇa father, Vaiśyā mother).