Shloka 26
न तत् क्रतुसहस्रेण नोपवासै श्ष नित्यश: । अभयस्य च दानेन यत् फल प्राप्तुयान्नर:,अभयदानसे मनुष्य जिस फलको पाता है, वह उसे सहस्रों यज्ञ और नित्यप्रति उपवास करनेसे भी नहीं मिल सकता है
na tat kratusahasreṇa nopavāsaiś ca nityaśaḥ | abhayasya ca dānena yat phalaṁ prāptum icchati naraḥ ||
Vidura said: The reward a person gains by giving the gift of fearlessness cannot be obtained even through a thousand sacrificial rites, nor by performing daily fasts.
विदुर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Moral protection of others—granting them freedom from fear (abhaya-dāna)—is presented as a higher and rarer merit than large-scale ritual sacrifice or habitual ascetic fasting.
In Strī Parva’s grief-filled aftermath of the war, Vidura speaks as a moral counselor, redirecting attention from ritual displays to compassionate, socially healing conduct—especially ensuring safety and reassurance for the vulnerable.