Shloka 6
आपद्धर्मे वैश्यवृत्तिः, विक्रय-निषेधाः, तथा ब्रह्म-क्षत्र-सम्बन्धः
Emergency Livelihood, Prohibited Trade, and Brahman–Kshatra Regulation
अजोडन्निर्वरुणो मेष: सूर्यो5श्वः पृथिवी विराट । धेनुर्यज्ञश्न सोमश्न न विक्रेया: कथंचन
ajoḍan nirvaruṇo meṣaḥ sūryo 'śvaḥ pṛthivī virāṭ | dhenur yajñaśna somaśna na vikreyāḥ kathaṃcana ||
Bhīṣma dijo: «No debe castrarse a la cabra; el carnero consagrado a Varuṇa no ha de ser dañado; el caballo del Sol es inviolable; la tierra —como el Virāṭ que sostiene a todos— no debe tratarse como propiedad. Asimismo, una vaca lechera y aquella que ha sido consagrada para el sacrificio —sea destinada a las ofrendas o al Soma— no deben venderse jamás, bajo ninguna circunstancia.»
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma lays down dharma-rules restricting human ownership and commerce over certain beings: animals consecrated to deities or sacrifice, and especially the milch-cow, are to be protected and must not be sold; sacred designation removes them from ordinary market exchange.
In Śānti Parva’s instruction on righteous conduct, Bhīṣma enumerates specific prohibitions—what must not be mutilated, harmed, or sold—framing them as ethical boundaries that uphold ritual sanctity and social responsibility.