Shloka 12
Varṇasaṃkara: Causes, Classifications, and Conduct-based Recognition (वर्णसंकरः—हेतु-जाति-आचारनिर्णयः)
मातुश्न यौतकं॑ यत् स्यात् कुमारी भाग एव सः । दौहित्र एव तद् रिक्थमपुत्रस्य पितुर्हरेत्
Bhīṣma uvāca — mātuḥ yautakaṃ yat syāt kumārī-bhāga eva saḥ | dauhitra eva tad riktham aputrasya pituḥ haret ||
Bhishma sprach: „Was als yautaka—als Mitgift der Mutter—an Vermögen kommt, ist in Wahrheit der Anteil der unverheirateten Tochter. Stirbt daher ein Mann ohne Sohn, so ist der Sohn der Tochter (dauhitra, der Enkel über die Tochter) berechtigt, dieses Erbe zu nehmen.“
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
A mother’s yautaka (dowry/nuptial property) is treated as the daughter’s rightful share; consequently, if a man dies sonless, the daughter’s son (dauhitra) is the proper heir to that estate, preserving the line of entitlement through the daughter.
In the Anushasana Parva’s dharma-instruction setting, Bhishma lays down a rule of inheritance: he clarifies who has claim over dowry-derived wealth and who inherits when there is no son—identifying the dauhitra as the legitimate recipient.