Shloka 48
गोमूल्यनिर्णयः — The Determination of Value through the Cow
Nahuṣa–Cyavana Episode
ज्यायांसमपि शीलेन विहीनं नैव पूजयेत् । अपि शूद्रं च धर्मज्ञं सदवृत्तमभिपूजयेत्
bhīṣma uvāca | jyāyāṁsam api śīlena vihīnaṁ naiva pūjayet | api śūdraṁ ca dharmajñaṁ sadavṛttam abhipūjayet |
Bhīṣma dit : On ne doit pas honorer même un homme de rang supérieur s’il est dépourvu de bonne conduite. Mais même un Śūdra, s’il connaît le dharma et vit selon une conduite droite, doit être honoré d’un respect particulier. L’enseignement place le caractère moral et la connaissance du dharma au-dessus du rang fondé sur la naissance pour décider qui mérite la vénération.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Honor should be based on character (śīla) and knowledge of dharma, not merely on birth or social rank. A high-born person lacking good conduct is not worthy of respect, while a Shudra who is dharma-knowing and well-behaved deserves special honor.
In Anuśāsana Parva, Bhishma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma. Here he lays down a norm for social and ethical judgment: reverence is to be given according to virtue and righteous conduct rather than inherited status.