Shloka 56
तीर्थवंशोपदेशः
Tīrtha-vaṃśa Upadeśa: Instruction on the Fruits of Sacred Waters
अत्युक्रान्ताश्व धर्मेषु पाषण्डसमयेषु च । कृशप्राणा: कृशधनास्तेभ्यो दत्त महाफलम्
atyukrāntāśva dharmeṣu pāṣaṇḍa-samayeṣu ca | kṛśa-prāṇāḥ kṛśa-dhanās tebhyo dattaṃ mahā-phalam ||
Bhishma dit : Les dons faits à ceux qui se tiennent loin des voies religieuses hérétiques ou trompeuses, et qui sont faibles faute de nourriture et pauvres en ressources, portent un très grand fruit spirituel. Ainsi la charité est d’autant plus méritoire qu’elle soutient les nécessiteux et les justes, sans nourrir l’imposture.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Charity bears the greatest merit when directed to the truly needy—those impoverished and weakened by lack of food—especially when they are not aligned with deceptive or heretical religious pretences. The verse emphasizes discernment in giving and prioritizing genuine suffering and integrity.
In the Anuśāsana Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma, including the ethics of dāna (giving). Here he highlights which recipients make a gift highly fruitful: the poor and hungry who remain distant from pāṣaṇḍa (religious imposture).