Shloka 116
Atithi-prāpti and the Brāhmaṇa’s Deliberation on Triadic Dharma (अतिथिप्राप्तिः धर्मत्रयविचारश्च)
वैश्यो विपुललाभ: स्याच्छूद्र: सुखमवाप्रुयात् । अपुत्रो लभते पुत्र॑ कन्या चैवेप्सितं पतिम्
vaiśyo vipulalābhaḥ syāc chūdraḥ sukham avāpnuyāt | aputro labhate putraṁ kanyā caivāpsitaṁ patim ||
Vaiśampāyana said: “A Vaiśya who studies or listens to this gains abundant benefit; a Śūdra attains happiness. One who is without a son obtains a son, and a maiden obtains the husband she desires.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse functions as a phalaśruti: it emphasizes that hearing or reciting the preceding teaching is spiritually efficacious and yields auspicious results—prosperity, happiness, and fulfillment of key life-wishes—thereby encouraging attentive listening and practice of dharma.
Vaiśampāyana concludes a section by stating the promised fruits of studying or listening to it, specifying benefits for different social groups and personal situations (wealth for the Vaiśya, happiness for the Śūdra, a son for the sonless, and a desired husband for a maiden).