Shloka 57
Śrāddha-Kalpa: Pitṛ-Pūjā and Tithi-Phala (श्राद्धकल्पः पितृपूजा च तिथिफलम्)
तस्मात् सुवर्ण ददता दत्ता: सर्वाः सम देवता: । भवन्ति पुरुषव्याप्र न हतः परमं विदुः
tasmāt suvarṇaṃ dadatā dattāḥ sarvāḥ sama-devatāḥ | bhavanti puruṣavyāghra na hi tataḥ paramaṃ viduḥ ||
Bhishma said: “Therefore, O tiger among men, when one gives gold, it is regarded as though one has given to all the deities alike. Hence the wise do not recognize any gift as superior to the gift of gold.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches the exalted merit of giving gold: it is treated as an offering that reaches all deities equally, and thus is praised as among the highest forms of dāna.
In Anuśāsana Parva’s instruction on dharma, Bhīṣma continues advising (addressing his listener as ‘puruṣavyāghra’) about the relative excellence of gifts, asserting the preeminence of suvarṇa-dāna.