Shloka 13
Varṇasaṃkara: Causes, Classifications, and Conduct-based Recognition (वर्णसंकरः—हेतु-जाति-आचारनिर्णयः)
ददाति हि स पिण्डान् वै पितुर्मातामहस्य च । पुत्रदौहित्रयोरेव विशेषो नास्ति धर्मत:,दौहित्र अपने पिता और नानाको भी पिण्ड देता है। धर्मकी दृष्टिसे पुत्र और दौहित्रमें कोई अन्तर नहीं है
dadāti hi sa piṇḍān vai pitur mātāmahasya ca | putra-dauhitrayor eva viśeṣo nāsti dharmataḥ ||
Bhishma dit : «En vérité, le dauhitra offre les piṇḍas (boules de riz funéraires) à son père et aussi à son grand-père maternel. Du point de vue du dharma, il n’y a aucune distinction entre un fils et le fils d’une fille.»
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhishma teaches that, in dharma, a daughter’s son (dauhitra) is not inferior to a son regarding ancestral obligations: he can perform śrāddha duties such as offering piṇḍas, including for the maternal line.
In the Anuśāsana Parva’s instruction on dharma, Bhishma lays down a rule about ritual responsibility and kinship: the dauhitra offers piṇḍas to his father and to his maternal grandfather, showing parity between son and daughter’s son in religious duty.