Shloka 70
दानफलप्रकरणम् — उपानहदानं, तिलदानं, भूमिदानं, गोदानं, अन्नदानं च
Gifts and Their Stated Results: Footwear, Sesame, Land, Cows, and Food
सागरान् सरित: शैलान् काननानि च सर्वश: । सर्वमेतन्नर: शक्र ददाति वसुधां ददत्
sāgarān saritaḥ śailān kānanāni ca sarvaśaḥ | sarvam etan naraḥ śakra dadāti vasudhāṃ dadat ||
Bhīṣma said: “O Śakra, when a man gives the earth (land) in charity, he is understood to be giving everything along with it—oceans, rivers, mountains, and forests in every respect.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches the ethical magnitude of land-gift (vasudhā-dāna): giving land is treated as giving all that the land contains—natural resources and features—thereby emphasizing the comprehensive responsibility and merit associated with such charity.
In Anuśāsana Parva’s instruction on dāna-dharma, Bhīṣma addresses Śakra (Indra) and explains that donating the earth/land implicitly includes donating its constituent elements—oceans, rivers, mountains, and forests—underscoring the totality of the gift.