Shloka 14
यस्य क्षेत्रादप्युदकं क्षेत्रमन््यस्य गच्छति । न तत्रानिच्छतस्तस्य भियद्येरन् सर्वसेतव:,वर्षा आदिका जल जिसके खेतसे होकर दूसरेके खेतमें जाता है, उसकी इच्छाके बिना उसके खेतकी आड़ या मेड़को नहीं तोड़ना चाहिये
yasya kṣetrād apy udakaṃ kṣetram anyasya gacchati | na tatra anicchatas tasya bhidyeyuḥ sarva-setavaḥ ||
Bhīṣma said: If water flowing from one man’s field passes into another’s field, then—even if it benefits the other—one must not, against the owner’s will, break or cut through the embankments and boundaries there. This rule upholds restraint and respect for another’s property while regulating shared resources like irrigation water.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even when water naturally flows between neighboring fields, one must not violate another person’s consent by breaching their boundary-bunds; dharma protects property and prevents conflict through restraint.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction on rājadharma and social regulation, Bhīṣma lays down a practical rule for rural life: managing irrigation and runoff without forcibly damaging another’s embankments.