Shloka 3
दानफलप्रकरणम् — उपानहदानं, तिलदानं, भूमिदानं, गोदानं, अन्नदानं च
Gifts and Their Stated Results: Footwear, Sesame, Land, Cows, and Food
भीष्मजीने कहा--बेटा! सब दानोंसे बढ़कर पृथ्वीदान बताया गया है। पृथ्वी अचल और अक्षय है। वह इस लोकमें समस्त उत्तम भोगोंको देनेवाली है ।। दोग्ध्री वासांसि रत्नानि पशून् व्रीहियवांस्तथा । भूमिद: सर्वभूतेषु शाश्वतीरेधते समा:,वस्त्र, रत्न, पशु और धान-जौ आदि नाना प्रकारके अन्न--इन सबको देनेवाली पृथ्वी ही है; अतः पृथ्वीका दान करनेवाला मनुष्य सदा समस्त प्राणियोंमें सबसे अधिक अभ्युदयशील होता है
bhīṣma uvāca—dogdhrī vāsāṃsi ratnāni paśūn vrīhi-yavāṃs tathā | bhūmidaḥ sarvabhūteṣu śāśvatīr edhate samāḥ ||
Bhishma said: “My son, above all gifts the gift of land is proclaimed. The earth is immovable and inexhaustible; in this world she bestows every finest enjoyment. Like a milch-cow she yields garments, jewels, cattle, and grains such as rice and barley. Therefore, the giver of land continually prospers among all beings, attaining enduring and unsurpassed welfare.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Land-gift (bhūmi-dāna) is praised as supremely beneficial because the earth is the enduring source that generates all necessities—food, wealth, and livelihood—so donating it is seen as producing lasting merit and prosperity.
In the Anuśāsana Parva’s instruction on gifts and dharma, Bhishma teaches the listener (Yudhiṣṭhira in context) by describing the earth as a generous provider and concluding that the donor of land attains continual flourishing among all beings.