Shloka 12
मातापितृगुरुपूजा-प्रशंसा
Praise of Venerating Mother, Father, and Teacher
सर्वे तस्यादृता लोका यस्यैते त्रय आदृता: । अनादूृतास्तु यस्यैते सर्वास्तस्याफला: क्रिया:
sarve tasyādṛtā lokā yasyaité traya ādṛtāḥ | anādṛtās tu yasyaité sarvās tasyāphalāḥ kriyāḥ ||
Bhīṣma dijo: «Todos los mundos quedan, por así decirlo, honrados por quien honra a estos tres. Pero para quien les muestra desprecio, todos sus actos meritorios se vuelven estériles».
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
True dharma begins with reverence: honoring the three revered pillars named in the surrounding context is equivalent to honoring the whole moral and social universe; disrespecting them nullifies the spiritual and ethical value of one’s good deeds.
In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma and right conduct. Here he emphasizes that respect toward the key triad under discussion is foundational—so foundational that it determines whether one’s virtuous actions bear fruit.