Shloka 17
Bhūmi-dānasya Māhātmya
The Pre-eminence of Land-Gift
तडागे यस्य गावस्तु पिबन्ति तृषिता जलम् | मृगपक्षिमनुष्याश्व सो5श्वमेधफलं लभेत्,जिसके तालाबमें प्यासी गौएँ पानी पीती हैं तथा मृग, पक्षी और मनुष्योंको भी जल सुलभ होता है, वह अश्वमेध यज्ञका फल पाता है
taḍāge yasya gāvas tu pibanti tṛṣitā jalam | mṛga-pakṣi-manuṣyāśva so ’śvamedha-phalaṁ labhet ||
Dijo Bhishma: “Quien tiene un estanque del que beben las vacas sedientas, y donde el agua se ofrece asimismo con facilidad a las bestias del bosque, a las aves, a los hombres y a los caballos, alcanza un mérito igual al del sacrificio Aśvamedha. La enseñanza ensalza la provisión compasiva de agua para todos los seres como un acto supremo de dharma, comparable a los más altos ritos regios.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Providing accessible water to all beings—cows, animals, birds, humans, and horses—is presented as an exceptionally high form of dharma, yielding merit comparable to the grand Aśvamedha sacrifice. The verse prioritizes compassionate, life-sustaining public service over mere ritual grandeur.
In Anuśāsana Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma and the fruits of charitable acts. Here he praises the construction or maintenance of a pond that relieves thirst for many beings, declaring its spiritual reward to be as great as that of an Aśvamedha.