Shloka 8
Kīṭopākhyāna: Prajā-pālana as Kṣatra-vrata and the Attainment of Brāhmaṇya
नहि प्राणात् प्रियतरं लोके किंचन विद्यते । तस्माद् दयां नर: कुर्याद् यथा55त्मनि तथा परे
na hi prāṇāt priyataraṃ loke kiṃcana vidyate | tasmād dayāṃ naraḥ kuryād yathātmāni tathā pare ||
Bhīṣma dit : «En ce monde, rien n’est plus cher que son propre souffle de vie. C’est pourquoi l’homme doit pratiquer la compassion : accorder aux autres la même miséricorde et la même considération qu’il recherche pour lui-même.»
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Since life is the dearest possession for every being, one should extend compassion to others by applying the same standard one applies to oneself—an ethical rule of empathy and non-harm grounded in the value of life.
In Anuśāsana Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma. Here he emphasizes dayā (compassion) as a practical moral duty, arguing from a universal human attachment to life.