Shloka 12
लुब्धक-कपोत-कपोती-आख्यानम्
The Hunter and the Pigeon Couple: Expiation and Refuge-Ethics
वृक्षमूलेडपि दयिता यस्य तिष्ठति तद् गृहम् । प्रासादो5पि तया हीन: कान्तार इति निश्चितम्
vṛkṣamūle ’pi dayitā yasya tiṣṭhati tad gṛham | prāsādo ’pi tayā hīnaḥ kāntāra iti niścitam ||
Bhishma dijo: «Aunque uno viva al pie de un árbol, ese lugar es de veras su hogar cuando su amada está allí con él. Pero aun un palacio, si carece de su presencia, no es sino un yermo desolado.»
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
A home is defined by loving companionship and shared life, not by material grandeur. With one’s beloved present, even extreme simplicity becomes ‘home’; without her, even a palace becomes spiritually and emotionally barren.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction on dharma and right living, Bhīṣma offers a proverbial contrast—tree-root dwelling versus palace—to teach that the essence of household life lies in the presence of one’s dear companion, not in external prosperity.