Shloka 27
Go-dāna-phala-nirdeśa
Merit and Destinations from the Gift of Cows
अरण्ये गृहवासे च शूराश्वातिथिपूजने । सर्वे यान्ति पराललोंकान् स्वकर्मफलनिर्जितान्
araṇye gṛhavāse ca śūrāśvātithipūjane | sarve yānti parāllokān svakarmaphalanirjitān ||
Bhīṣma teaches that excellence in dharma is not confined to a single way of life: some are heroic in forest-dwelling and austerity, some in maintaining the householder’s life, and some in honoring and serving guests. All such people, by the merit earned through their own deeds, attain the higher worlds they have won as the fruit of their actions.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma affirms that multiple dharmic paths—forest-discipline, responsible household life, and devoted hospitality—can all lead to auspicious posthumous realms, because attainment depends on sincere performance and the merit (karma-phala) of one’s own deeds.
In Bhīṣma’s instruction on righteous conduct, he broadens the idea of virtue: he lists different spheres where one may be ‘heroic’ (steadfast in duty) and concludes that each, when performed well, yields earned higher worlds.