Shloka 3
दानफलप्रकरणम् — उपानहदानं, तिलदानं, भूमिदानं, गोदानं, अन्नदानं च
Gifts and Their Stated Results: Footwear, Sesame, Land, Cows, and Food
भीष्मजीने कहा--बेटा! सब दानोंसे बढ़कर पृथ्वीदान बताया गया है। पृथ्वी अचल और अक्षय है। वह इस लोकमें समस्त उत्तम भोगोंको देनेवाली है ।।
bhīṣma uvāca—dogdhrī vāsāṃsi ratnāni paśūn vrīhi-yavāṃs tathā | bhūmidaḥ sarvabhūteṣu śāśvatīr edhate samāḥ ||
Bhishma dijo: «Hijo mío, por encima de todos los dones se tiene el don de la tierra. La tierra es inmóvil e inagotable; en este mundo concede todos los goces más nobles. Como una vaca lechera, la tierra da vestiduras, joyas, ganado y granos como el arroz y la cebada. Por ello, quien dona tierras prospera siempre entre todos los seres, alcanzando un bienestar duradero e incomparable.»
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Land-gift (bhūmi-dāna) is praised as supremely beneficial because the earth is the enduring source that generates all necessities—food, wealth, and livelihood—so donating it is seen as producing lasting merit and prosperity.
In the Anuśāsana Parva’s instruction on gifts and dharma, Bhishma teaches the listener (Yudhiṣṭhira in context) by describing the earth as a generous provider and concluding that the donor of land attains continual flourishing among all beings.