Shloka 30
आपद्धर्मे वैश्यवृत्तिः, विक्रय-निषेधाः, तथा ब्रह्म-क्षत्र-सम्बन्धः
Emergency Livelihood, Prohibited Trade, and Brahman–Kshatra Regulation
तेभ्यो नमश्न भद्रं च ये शरीराणि जुद्धते । ब्रह्मद्विषो नियच्छन्तस्तेषां नो5स्तु सलोकता । ब्रह्मलोकजित: स्वर्ग्यान् वीरांस्तान् मनुरब्रवीत्
tebhyo namaś ca bhadraṃ ca ye śarīrāṇi yuddhate | brahmadviṣo niyacchantas teṣāṃ no 'stu salokatā | brahmalokajitaḥ svargyān vīrāṃs tān manur abravīt |
Bhīṣma said: “Salutations to them, and blessings upon them—those heroes who stake their very bodies in battle, restraining the haters of Brahman. May we attain fellowship in the same world as they. Having conquered Brahmaloka, Manu declared those valiant ones to be worthy of heaven.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse praises those who risk their lives in righteous battle to restrain forces hostile to Brahman (sacred law, Vedic order, and its protectors). Such defenders are honored as heaven-worthy, and their merit is portrayed as leading to exalted realms like Brahmaloka and companionship (salokatā) with the virtuous.
In Bhīṣma’s instruction during the Śānti Parva, he offers reverence and blessings to valorous fighters who check the ‘haters of Brahman.’ He then cites Manu’s pronouncement that these heroes are svargya—deserving of heaven—framing martial protection of dharma as spiritually consequential.