Shloka 3

Bhūmi-dānasya Māhātmya

The Pre-eminence of Land-Gift

Devanagari script

तस्या: क्षेत्रविशेषाश्व॒ तडागानां च बन्धनम्‌ । औदकानि च सर्वाणि प्रवक्ष्याम्यनुपूर्वश:

Transliteration

tasyāḥ kṣetraviśeṣāś ca taḍāgānāṃ ca bandhanam | audakāni ca sarvāṇi pravakṣyāmy anupūrvaśaḥ ||

Translation

Bhīṣma said: “I shall now explain, in due order, the various kinds of land and their specific fields, the construction and embankment of ponds, and all other water-works—wells and the like—setting forth what is necessary to know.”

Word by Word

• तस्याः: of that (land/region)
• तस्याः: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, एकवचन

• क्षेत्रविशेषान्: special kinds of fields/plots
• क्षेत्रविशेषान्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: क्षेत्रविशेष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, बहुवचन

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च

• तडागानाम्: of ponds/tanks
• तडागानाम्: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: तडाग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, बहुवचन

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च

• बन्धनम्: construction/embankment (binding, making)
• बन्धनम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: बन्धन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• औदकानि: water-related (works/structures)
• औदकानि: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: औदक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, बहुवचन

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च

• सर्वाणि: all
• सर्वाणि: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, बहुवचन

• प्रवक्ष्यामि: I shall explain/tell
• प्रवक्ष्यामि: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: वच् (धातु)
• Form: लृट् (भविष्यत्), उत्तम, एकवचन, परस्मैपद

• अनुपूर्वशः: in due order, sequentially
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अनुपूर्वशः

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhīṣma
• kṣetra (fields/land)
• taḍāga (ponds/tanks)
• audakāni (water-works such as wells)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Bhīṣma frames the discussion of land-types and water-works as a dharmic, ordered instruction: understanding and building ponds, wells, and related structures is a form of responsible stewardship that supports life, agriculture, and public welfare, thereby generating merit.

What is happening in the narrative?

In Anuśāsana Parva, Bhīṣma continues his didactic discourse and announces the next section: he will systematically describe classifications of land/fields and the practicalities of constructing ponds and other water-reservoirs.