Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 15
Dāna–Tapaḥ Praśaṃsā and Gṛhastha-Upadeśa
Maitreya
ते5पि यस्मात् प्रभावेण हता: क्षत्रियपुंगवा: । सम्प्राप्तास्ते गतिं पुण्यां तस्मान्मा शोच पुत्रक
te 'pi yasmāt prabhāveṇa hatāḥ kṣatriya-puṅgavāḥ | samprāptās te gatiṁ puṇyāṁ tasmān mā śoca putraka ||
Bhīṣma said: “Those foremost among kṣatriyas too, who were slain through his prowess, have attained a holy destiny. Therefore, my child, do not grieve. For one who gives up life in battle, having met death in the kṣatriya calling, the tradition recognizes an exalted course after death; likewise, the eminent warriors who fell on this battlefield, displaying their strength, have also reached a meritorious state—so sorrow is not fitting for them.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma teaches that for kṣatriyas who die in righteous battle, death is not merely loss but a dharmic culmination that leads to a meritorious destiny; therefore grief should be restrained and transformed into understanding of duty and consequence.
Bhīṣma is consoling his listener, explaining that the prominent warriors slain through a hero’s prowess on the battlefield have attained a holy posthumous state, and thus the listener should not mourn them.