Shloka 41
तीर्थवंशोपदेशः
Tīrtha-vaṃśa Upadeśa: Instruction on the Fruits of Sacred Waters
(पालाशो द्विजदण्ड: स्यादश्वत्थ: क्षत्रियस्य तु । औदुम्बरश्न वैश्यस्य धर्म एष युधिष्ठिर ।।
bhīṣma uvāca |
pālāśo dvijadaṇḍaḥ syād aśvatthaḥ kṣatriyasya tu |
audumbaraś ca vaiśyasya dharma eṣa yudhiṣṭhira ||
dātuḥ pratigrahītuś ca dharmādharmāv imau śṛṇu |
brāhmaṇasyānṛte 'dharmaḥ proktaḥ pātakasaṃjñitaḥ |
caturguṇaḥ kṣatriyasya vaiśyasyāṣṭaguṇaḥ smṛtaḥ ||
Bhīṣma said: “For a brāhmaṇa, the staff should be of palāśa wood; for a kṣatriya, of aśvattha (sacred fig); and for a vaiśya, of udumbara (cluster fig). This, O Yudhiṣṭhira, is the established rule of dharma. Now hear the right and wrong concerning the giver and the receiver of gifts. The wrongdoing called ‘sin’ that is declared for a brāhmaṇa when he speaks falsehood is reckoned fourfold for a kṣatriya and eightfold for a vaiśya.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma links external markers of discipline (the prescribed staff-wood for each varṇa) with inner ethical accountability, emphasizing that falsehood is blameworthy for all, and that its moral weight is stated to increase for kṣatriyas and vaiśyas relative to brāhmaṇas in this teaching.
In the Anuśāsana Parva dialogue, Yudhiṣṭhira asks about dharma; Bhīṣma continues his instruction by stating rules associated with varṇa conduct (including the proper staff) and then transitions to norms of giving and receiving gifts, introducing a graded discussion of wrongdoing connected to untruth.