Shloka 11
Satya–Anṛta Viveka (Discrimination between Truth and Falsehood) | सत्य–अनृत विवेकः
धारणाद् धर्ममित्याहुर्धमेण विधृता: प्रजा: । यः स्याद् धारणसंयुक्त: स धर्म इति निश्चय:,धर्मका नाम “धर्म” इसलिये पड़ा है कि वह सबको धारण करता है--अधोगतिमें जानेसे बचाता है और जीवनकी रक्षा करता है। धर्मने ही सारी प्रजाको धारण कर रखा है; अत: जिससे धारण और पोषण सिद्ध होता हो, वही धर्म है; ऐसा धर्मवेत्ताओंका निश्चय है
dhāraṇād dharmam ity āhur dharmeṇa vidhṛtāḥ prajāḥ | yaḥ syād dhāraṇa-saṁyuktaḥ sa dharma iti niścayaḥ ||
Bhīṣma said: ‘It is called dharma because it upholds. By dharma the people are sustained and held together. Therefore, whatever is endowed with the power to support, preserve, and protect life—this alone is dharma; such is the settled conclusion of those who know dharma.’
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Dharma is defined by its function: it ‘upholds’—protecting life, sustaining society, and maintaining order. Whatever genuinely supports and preserves beings is dharma.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction on righteous conduct after the war, Bhīṣma teaches Yudhiṣṭhira by giving a foundational definition of dharma as the sustaining principle of society and life.